The Pokemon Master's Return
by Ninmast
Summary: When a world without Pokemon or Digimon is invaded by Team Rocket, TK must take over his former identity as Ash Kechum and help a boy from that world defeat Giovanni. Based on Firehedgehog's Fate of Hope.
1. Invasion from Another Dimension

Author's Note: This story is my idea for a sequel to another fan fiction story that I had read online on this site, http://www.fanfiction.net/. Since this other story wasn't complete at the time I began my own, I have not completely read it. Therefore, any similarities between scenes is completely coincidental. Also, I do not own Digimon: Digital Monsters or Pokemon: Pocket Monsters. They are the property of their separate companies, Saban and Nintendo respectively, I think. Don't quote me on that, though.  
  
  
  
The Pokemon Master's Return  
  
  
  
By: Ninmast  
  
  
  
Chapter 1  
  
Invasion from another dimension  
  
"ALRIGHT!!!" Shawn Rae yelled, startling his mother out of her quiet absorption in her evening shows.  
  
"Not so loud," Mrs. Rae moaned, covering her ears. "For crying out loud, Shawn! What in the world has got you so excited that you would cause me to need early hearing aids?"  
  
"I just got my Gyarados up to level 100," he said, crooning over his Game Boy Color. "That's the highest that you can raise a pokemon. Do you have any idea how hard that is?"  
  
"Hon," his mother said, laughing now, "I don't even know what a Gyarados is."  
  
"Well, it's this giant sea dragon-"  
  
Mrs. Rae held up a hand to silence her son. "And I don't want to know, either." Turning back to her programs, she said, "Honestly, I don't understand what you see in that game! You're fifteen! You should be interested in football, or dances, or . . . something!"  
  
"It's a challenge, that's why." But he said this with a grin. This was an argument that they had quite often. His mother always insisted that he was getting too old for such games, and Shawn always said that there was a lot more to them than what it looked like.  
  
People who hated Pokemon, or, even worse, video games in general, looked at Shawn and saw an addict. Fans of Pokemon, on the other hand, saw a walking Pokedex. He knew just about everything there was to know about Pokemon. Given a vague description of one, he could tell you its name, type, attack type, evolutionary forms, even where you could find it. "Besides, you never know when something like this could come in handy," he said now, earning a smile from his mother. Granted, it probably wouldn't get him into a good college, unless it was getting money from bets, or something of that nature. Of course, stranger things have been known to happen.  
  
As if on cue, the program his mother had been watching was suddenly interrupted by the annoying beeping that signaled an important emergency news bulletin. As Shawn and his mother snapped to attention, the beeping stopped and the blank screen was replaced with the face of a pale, shaken news reporter.  
  
"Before I begin," the reporter said, "I must warn you that what follows are frightening scenes, and those of you with children might want to send them out of the room."  
  
"Shawn," Mrs. Rae said, her face tight, "out."  
  
"But Mom! You said yourself that I was fifteen! Let me stay!"  
  
"I said out," she yelled.  
  
Shawn hung his head in defeat. That was the parental voice that no child, no matter how old, could defy. He saved his game, shut off his Game Boy, unplugged his adapter, and turned around to walk out of the room.  
  
While Shawn's back was to the television, the reporter had started showing video footage. Without warning, a mighty roar came from the television speakers that stopped him dead in his tracks. That was a roar I'd recognize anywhere, he thought. But it couldn't be, could it? He turned around to face the television screen, despite his mother's protests. As soon as he saw the picture on the screen, a bullhorn wouldn't have gotten his attention. On the screen was a big, blue, scaly, snake-like creature riding through the rough waves as if they were nothing. Only about a fourth of it was sticking out of the water, but that was an easy quarter of a mile long. It had two big, black, angry eyes, but most of it's head was taken up with its gigantic mouth, permanently stuck open in a ferocious silent roar. Standing on top of this terrifying monster's head was a man in a pitch-black uniform with a red "R" painted on the front. There was no doubt in Shawn's mind. The monster was, without a doubt, a Gyarados, and the man on top of it was one of the many members of the ruthless Team Rocket.  
  
The world is being invaded by Team Rocket. The thought was almost comical in its insanity. Shawn felt sure that he was going to crack. He was sure that this thought was the first crack in the dam of his sanity, and any moment, that dam was going to burst and he was going to roll over laughing hysterically. As he watched, he noticed some sort of portal behind the Gyarados. Out of the portal came what could be nothing else but a Porygon2, followed by an expensive, and very powerful, looking helicopter. Inside the helicopter's cockpit was no doubt a greedy man in an equally expensive light brown Italian suit. The world is being invaded by Team Rocket, and we're probably all going to die. Yeah, that was the funniest thing in the world.  
  
* * *  
  
One year passed. Shawn became an important official in the ranks of Team Rocket, thanks to his wealth of pokemon knowledge. One of the first things Giovanni did after taking over the world was to set up pokemon breeding "ranches" where he could raise pokemon and train people for the physical labor of rebuilding what had become, almost overnight, his world. Of course, in an unfamiliar land, he needed people who knew a great deal about both pokemon and this world's ecology. Shawn, luckily, was one of the few who were qualified as both. Secretly, he held a hatred for Giovanni and his men that was almost inhuman. They had come in, destroyed his world, and swept it aside like old rubbish, making way for The World As It Should Be According To Giovanni. He hid this hatred well, however, and, on the outside, he was the best performing, most loyal member of Team Rocket. Once he had been introduced to real Poke-Battles, he quickly became the strongest, most skilled pokemon trainer in the world, second only to Giovanni, himself. Although he started as nothing more than an important- looking breeder, Shawn quickly earned himself a position as one of Giovanni's most trusted agents. In fact, the only one that Giovanni trusted more than him was Agent 009, Domino, a.k.a. The Black Tulip.  
  
Today, as he had on many other days since becoming an agent, Shawn led a group of Rocket grunts through the towns as a sort of peacekeeping force. Peacekeeping being a nice way of saying, beating up anyone who badmouths Team Rocket.  
  
Drudgery duty again, he thinks to himself with a sigh. Of course, that's all there was to do, since there was no force that could match that of Giovanni's. At the time of the Invasion, the United States military was the most powerful force in the world, and all it took were five Gyarados to wipe them off of the face of the earth. Now, there was no one strong enough to take out the pokemon of a true Team Rocket agent, like himself.  
  
Except for maybe the strongest of the gym leaders.  
  
On his free time, which was pretty often, lately, Shawn had been working on collecting the badges of all eight gym leaders in his region. There was only one gym leader left that he had not beaten. That was the leader of the Ground Pokemon Gym, and that title, just like in the original Pokemon dimension, was held by none other than Giovanni, himself.  
  
As if he would give that up, he thought to himself with a smirk. Then his mind moved on to his plans for the weekend. At first sight, Shawn had fallen head over heels for his world's grass pokemon gym leader, a girl by the name of Kathryn. Kat, as everyone called her, was a sweet girl from Tokyo with a weak spot for Eevees and their evolutions, and was a year younger than Shawn. Although she looked innocent, she had raised a Meganium whose Vine Whip could crush most opponents. In fact, Shawn had figured this out the hard way when she took out his Machoke with one hit. An unexpected victory, but one that deserves all the more respect because of it. Shawn came back and won the Grass Gym Badge with his Flareon. Ironically, he gave that same Flareon to her for her birthday a month later. This weekend, he was taking Kat out to eat, something he could not afford to do if it weren't for his hefty wage as a Team Rocket agent. That girl may have looked petite, but, man, she could eat!  
  
Absorbed in such fantasies, he was unaware of the tomato that was flying at his head. When it hit him, it sent him off-balance, and he pinwheeled his arms in an effort to regain it as he fell hard sideways into the ditch.  
  
"That's for trying to take over our world, Team Bucket," a boy's voice cried.  
  
As he got up, he saw one of the grunts roughly grab hold of the boy, call him a little brat, and raise his fist to hit him. Shawn walked over to the grunt and grabbed hold of his wrist, effortlessly stopping the punch in mid- swing. "Now, now, now," he said, as if scolding a child, "no sense in harming an innocent child, is there?" Then, when the grunt showed no signs of getting his point, he said, sterner, "Let him go!" The grunt obeyed immediately. The child, free from the man's grip, stumbled about a yard, then spun around to face Shawn. As he turned, Shawn saw pokeballs on the boy's belt, a sure sign that he was a trainer. Wiping the tomato off of his face with a handkerchief, Shawn said, "I see you're a trainer, kid. Are you any good?"  
  
"I'm the best in my town," the boy said, his voice shaky with fear.  
  
"Wow! I'm impressed," Shawn said gently, and he was. "Not bad for your age. How old are you? Six? Seven?"  
  
"I'm ten," the boy said vehemently.  
  
"Well, nice to meet you! My name's Shawn," he introduced himself with a smile. "Hey, how would you like to battle against the second best in the world," he then asked, pointing his thumb at himself. "Tell you what, I'll even let you send out all six of your pokemon, and I'll only send out one of mine!"  
  
The kid grinned then, saying, "Fine, but you're going to lose."  
  
They both jumped backward, giving each other room, while everyone around them spread out to get out of the way.  
  
"Raticate, Graveler, Pidgeotto, Magnaton, Vaporeon, Beedrill!" He yelled out each of the names of his pokemon as they each appeared in a flash of blue light from his pokeballs.  
  
"Impressive lineup, kid! Just like at the bowling alley!" He smirked as he threw up his pokeball and yelled, "Nidoking! I choose you!" as the pokemon appeared in front of the kid's pokemon. This was going to be a piece of cake.  
  
"Raticate, Hyper Fang! Graveler, Rollout! Pidgeotto, Drill Peck! Vaporeon, Hydro Pump! Beedrill, Fury Attack!" The kid yelled the orders at his pokemon. Immediately, they followed his instructions.  
  
As the attacks rushed in, all Shawn could say is, "What!? No way!" Then he yelled, "Nidoking, Barrier!" At the last moment, the dinosaur-like pokemon put up his Psychic Barrier, deflecting all of the attacks. When the smoke cleared, Shawn just laughed, saying, "You see, kid? That's why I like Nidoking. He's such a flexible pokemon." Nidoking roared triumphantly in response to this. "Nidoking," he yelled, "plow them over with your Thrash attack!" Nidoking roared again, then charged right into the middle of the whole mess, thrashing about at anything that moved, sending pokemon flying. The only two pokemon left were Pidgeotto, who he couldn't reach, and Vaporeon, who, surprisingly enough, took the full brunt of its part of the attack, and didn't get scratched.  
  
"Ha, ha!" The kid danced around, laughing. "The big, bad Rocket can't reach my Pidgeotto, and can't scratch my Vaporeon!" The two pokemon chirped and howled happily at this praise. "Let's see how much your Nidoking can take now that its so confused! Pidgeotto, use your Gust attack!"  
  
Pidgeotto flapped its powerful wings faster and faster, creating a miniature tornado that slammed into Shawn's Nidoking, who had been teetering around dangerously after his Thrash attack had made him dizzy. The attack didn't knock the heavy pokemon back, but it did cause it to straighten out.  
  
"Whoops," Shawn said with a smile, pushing his hand through his brown hair. "Looks like you just straightened my Nidoking out! Too bad, and that was your only chance, too! Nidoking, use your Thunderbolt on that bird!" Nidoking grunts in response as a yellow aura surrounds the pokemon. Suddenly, Nidoking roars as the electricity soars out like a missile and hits the Pidgeotto.  
  
"Ohhhhhhhh," it cawed, as the attack surrounds it, jolting electricity throughout its body. As the attack fades and it falls to the ground, it utters an exhausted, "To."  
  
As he had with the rest of his pokemon as they faint, the boy pointed his pokeball at the wasted bird, saying, "Pidgeotto, return!" The bird was sucked back up into the ball in another flash of blue light. "Vaporeon," the kid addressed his last pokemon, "I'm going to have to depend on you to take this guy out. Can you do it?" Vaporeon howled in affirmation. "Good! Now that his barrier's down, you can use your Hydro Pump on him again." Vaporeon did so gladly.  
  
As the powerful blast of water bore down on his Nidoking, Shawn just smirked and said, "Let's show this kid who he's dealing with. Just block it with your hand, Nidoking." The bulky pokemon stuck out its right hand and stopped the blast cold, causing the water to go spraying everywhere in a heavy rain. "Now, Nidoking, finish it off with your Horn Drill!" Nidoking roared as the horn on top of his head began to glow.  
  
"Brace yourself, Vaporeon! This is going to hurt!" The kid covered his eyes in fear. So did the pokemon, for that matter.  
  
"You got that right, kid! Nidoking, do it!" Suddenly, a large energy drill shot out of the pokemon's horn and flew through the air, spinning right through the Vaporeon.  
  
Although no hole could be seen, the pokemon was obviously trashed as it flew backward into the kid, who sulked as he told his beloved Vaporeon that it did the best that it could and to rest awhile as he returned it to his pokeball.  
  
"One-hit KO. Nidoking, return," Shawn said, feeling as upset as he seemed callous. "Come on," he said to the grunts. "We've got work to do."  
  
As he walked away and around a corner, he spotted a teenage girl with short, blonde ringlets falling out from under a white hat. She was dressed in a tight, black shirt and an equally tight, white, and extremely short miniskirt that showed off all of her curves and did more than flaunt her incredibly long legs. She was also the last person that Shawn wanted to see right then. Of course, there was no way of sneaking away from her, not with a dozen grunts gawking behind him and her walking toward him from the post that she had been leaning against. As she came up to him, all he could do was hold back his bile and say in his most flattering voice, "Hey, Domino! What brings you here?"  
  
"That was quite a battle, back there," she said, almost conversationally, which unnerved Shawn, because Domino never said anything conversationally.  
  
"It was just a kid," he responded, feeling, for some reason that he should defend himself from those big, bright, blue, and deceptively innocent eyes. "There's no honor in a battle like that."  
  
His mention of honor caused her to mentally stagger as her eyes lost focus for a moment. Obviously, this was the last thing she had expected to hear from him, and it had thrown her for a loop. Shawn was relieved when her stare faltered. Usually, he wasn't so shy of girls, but this one was just downright unnerving!  
  
He must have smiled from his relief, because she saw it and suddenly brightened up, saying, "Oh! You're joking! You had me worried, there, for a bit, Shawn." Shawn was too glad to have narrowly escaped such serious trouble to correct her. "Anyway," she continued sweetly (she seemed to do everything sweetly; it was one of her few good traits, if you could call it that). "I just got a Kangaskhan, and I thought you might want to take your Nidoking up against it."  
  
"Are you challenging me to a Poke-Battle," he asked, a real smile spreading across his face for a change as he nurtured an insult in the back of his mind. So help me, he thought, I may have a soft heart, but I've got a cruel streak in me a mile wide. I just can't help picking on this girl.  
  
"I guess I am," she said, standing extremely close to him and walking her fingers up his chest. "Why," she asked sweetly, "do you doubt me?"  
  
"No," he answered, ready to fire his insult now that she had walked right into his trap, "it's just that Kangaskhan is a Maternal pokemon, and, well, let's just say that you don't cross me as the Maternal type."  
  
She staggered back as if he had slapped her, and then she did slap him. She slapped him strongly across his face. He squinted for a moment until the stinging went away. The girl was as strong as she was good looking. "You jerk," she yelled at the top of her lungs while Shawn smiled inwardly, proud of the job he did. "You insensitive little jerk!" But then she inadvertently put a crater in his balloon by calming down, walking back up to him, tangling her fingers in his hair, and whispering in his ear. "But that's okay, because you were trying to make me laugh, and, even though your sense of humor is as dry as the Sahara, you try, and that's what I love about you. You try for me."  
  
She sucked on his ear and kissed him while he thought, Geesh! What a tramp! She acts like we've been together forever! Talk about a slut!  
  
Just as she was about to turn his head so that she could plant one on his kisser, her phone rang. Even though he knew that it was Giovanni, himself, on the other end of the line (Who else could it be? That phone had only one line, a direct one straight to headquarters, and Giovanni was the only one who had access to the number.), he was relieved that something had managed to stop Domino before she could go any further. She had always had a crush on him, apparently, and usually, he was able to hide, or get out of her path entirely. Of course, he had never told her about Kat. He didn't like Domino. In fact, he hated her guts. But that didn't matter. All that did matter was that Domino wanted Shawn, and nothing and nobody was going to get in her way. If she knew about his feelings for Kat, she would hunt her down and kill her. Shawn would insult Domino and poke jabs at her, usually right in front of her face, like he did just now. However, Domino had this idea in her mind that Shawn loved her as unconditionally as she loved him, and an anvil dropping out of the sky onto her head wasn't going to change her mind.  
  
Now, she reached into her pocket to pull out her phone. How she could fit her hand, much less a phone, into a pocket on an outfit that tight is beyond me, Shawn thought with disgust. However, the phone, and the hand, came right back out, smooth and easy, as if her pocket was as loose as she was. Shawn forced himself not to snicker as he stored that delicious morsel away as a good jab that would have to wait until later.  
  
Domino opened her phone, and immediately her shell had surrounded her once again. "009 reporting, sir." She was soft no more. She was brisk and businesslike, the good soldier. There would be no getting to her now. Any attempt to do so would be met with a cold stare and a threat to your life if she thought you were worth that much. Now, Shawn thought, as he often had before, that perhaps it was possible that this shell of hers was more of a defense mechanism than mere good behavior. A quote came to mind. He had no idea where it was from, but it was fitting. So much like a turtle are they: A hardened shell with fragile flesh beneath. Yes, it was fitting. He wondered about Domino's history. It was a secret to everyone but herself. Even her real name was a secret. Domino was just a nickname.  
  
The girl of many mysteries, he thought, grinning inwardly as he thought about his own many secrets. We really are quite a pair.  
  
As she was speaking to Giovanni, she caught Shawn staring at her, misinterpreted it as him admiring her, and gave him a look that clearly said, Thanks, but it will have to wait. He groaned, but from frustration with the woman, rather than being upset about the refusal, as his grunts obviously believe was the reason. Three seconds ago, I couldn't get her off of me. If this girl doesn't have a split personality disorder, I don't know who does. He had no idea just how wrong he was.  
  
As she hangs up, she says, "First thing's first, all of you pathetic grunts are to come with me back to headquarters. Come on! Let's move it!"  
  
As they walk by Shawn, several try to comfort him, saying things like, "Too bad, man," or, "And you were so close, too!" He just nods at them as they go by. Let them think what they want to think. If he has to play the role of the shunned lover, then so be it. Heaven knows he's played enough roles over the course of the last year that it really doesn't matter anymore.  
  
"Second," Domino continues, somehow managing to sound as sweet as honey and as dangerous as a knife at the same time, "Shawn, your orders are to wait here. The boss's helicopter will be here shortly to pick you up. He wants to speak to you in person." Turning back to the grunts, she said, "What are you clowns looking at? You need me to walk you back to headquarters?" The grunts start running, afraid of Domino's legendary wrath. Turning back to Shawn, she is soft for the last time that day. "Come back to me safely," she told him, caressing his face with her hand. "Try not to lose your head, okay? I like it right where it is." She pulled his face up to hers, and gave him a long, soft kiss. Under any other circumstances, Shawn would probably have pushed her off of him. At the moment, however, he was too afraid of why Giovanni wanted to see him in person, and the kiss was gentle and comforting. Under these circumstances, he wouldn't have been able to break this kiss for the world.  
  
* * *  
  
In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:  
  
After a discussion of loyalties with Giovanni, Shawn joins the chase as Team Rocket struggles to hunt down a missing Porygon2 who holds the secret to interdimensional travel. When he stumbles across the method of the pokemon's escape, he is sucked into the original Pokemon dimension. Apparently stranded without the Porygon2, Shawn begins to search for another way home. But what is it with that strange boy and girl who seem to be following him? Is it just his imagination? Or could these two mean trouble? Find out next time in Chapter 2 - Reality Check!  
  
So, what do you think? This is my first attempt at writing fan fiction. Any criticism you have, good or bad, is appreciated, and I will take it into consideration as I write the next chapter. If the next chapter goes as fast as this one, it should be done in a few days, so if you want a say in it, you'd better start sending in those reviews! 


	2. Reality Check

Author's Note: Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. For a while, I was away from my computer, and then I was grounded. At some points, I just had writer's block. Thanks for waiting, though, and I hope you enjoy it. Don't forget to review it once you've read it. And I want bad reviews, too. I want you to tell me what's wrong with it as well as what's good. Thanks, and, once again, enjoy!  
  
Chapter 2  
  
Reality Check  
  
  
  
Shawn stood outside the doorway to the cockpit of the high-tech helicopter that served as the main source of transportation for the leader of Team Rocket, Giovanni. The decoration was quite utilitarian, meaning that there was none. The steel walls were cold and paint-free. The entire ship was this way, void in the worst way possible: It had no human touch. It was as cold and bare as its maker.  
  
The pneumatic door in front of him slid open with a faint hiss as Giovanni pushed a button on the arm of his chair.  
  
"Come in, Shawn," he said, his voice as hard as the earth his gym badge represented. "I've been expecting you."  
  
As if he hadn't made a special trip out here just to pick me up, Shawn thought, bile rising in his throat at the audacity of the man. As he walked in, he said, "You wanted to talk to me, sir?"  
  
"Sit down, Shawn," the man said, his ever-constant brown suit rustling as he gestured to a chair in front of him. "This may take a while. Do you want a drink," he asked, filling an ice-filled glass with scotch for himself. Giovanni wasn't a heavy drinker, but he liked an occasional drink as much as the next man.  
  
"No, thank you, sir," Shawn answered. "I try to stay away from alcohol."  
  
Thinking that Giovanni must have an Italian brown suit for every day of the week, Shawn sat. His blood chilled as it always did whenever the man looked at him. Giovanni's eyes were as cold, hard, and ruthless as his actions suggested, but there was a constant flame of fury, of madness, dancing behind those eyes. It was his one weakness, or his greatest strength, depending on how it was used. His wrath was legendary. Nobody ever just disappeared when they angered him. They were torn to shreds and plastered to walls as a reminder of what could happen when Giovanni's anger was triggered. And those were the lucky ones.  
  
Twirling his cup and watching the scotch swirl around inside, Giovanni said, "How long has it been since you came under my care?"  
  
"A year last week," Shawn answered. When Team Rocket first took over the planet, there had been protesters who refused to follow Giovanni's regime. They were all quickly, and not at all quietly, eliminated. One of those protesters had been Shawn's mother. Shawn had begged her not to do so, knowing what Giovanni would do, but Mrs. Rae, stubborn as she was, had ignored him completely. At the time of the slaughter (it could not rightly be called anything else), Shawn was already showing promise as a trainer, and Giovanni, seeing his talent, adopted him as his own son. Although son was an exaggeration, it gave Shawn a respected and feared position among any Rockets.  
  
"And you know," Giovanni continued, "that, since I have no blood relatives, and you are the closest thing I have to a son, that if anything was to happen to me where I could not continue to lead Team Rocket, that you would stand the greatest chance at gaining leadership of all of the actions of my followers in both dimensions, am I right?"  
  
"Honestly, sir, I had not given it any thought," he replied. And he hadn't. He still grieved for his mother, although he never showed it, and he had been too preoccupied with keeping himself too busy to show his pain and anger that he had not even thought of gaining leadership of Team Rocket.  
  
"Hmph," Giovanni grunted, although whether it was an approval, a disapproval, or a scoff, Shawn couldn't tell. "In any case, Shawn, your actions this afternoon worry me about your capability to properly deal with such a responsibility."  
  
Shawn felt like he had swallowed a bucket of ice cubes. Did Giovanni know about his mention of honor to Domino? If he had, he was dead meat.  
  
But Giovanni inadvertently took his worry away when he said, "Instead of physically punishing the child, you challenged him to a battle. Would you like to explain yourself? That isn't standard operating procedure, you know that as well as I do."  
  
Shawn had an answer for that. "The grunt would have killed the boy," he said. "If he had, then the boy's suffering would have been over as soon as he was unconscious, or dead, whichever came first. On the other hand, if I hurt his pokemon, instead of him, he would be hurt even worse than any bruise could ever do to him. You know the type this kid was, sir. He was a softy who cared too much about his pokemon. If one of them stepped on a nail, he'd probably go into tears over them. Besides, he had talent. Properly utilized, such talent could be a great addition to the ranks of Team Rocket."  
  
"Hmph," Giovanni said again, only this one came with a smile, one of the highest forms of praise that any Rocket could hope to receive from this man. "I like the way you think, Shawn. An excellent idea, preying on his love of pokemon. Such actions disperse my worries about your capabilities as a leader. However, you know as well as I do that people who are brave enough, or stupid, as the case would be, to challenge a Rocket Executive like that child did are not easily convinced to side with those that they challenge."  
  
"Of course, sir, but I also know that children are easily manipulated. Given proper motivation, you could talk one into charging a full-grown Onix. Once motivation has been established, training can begin. Through easily planted lies, you can brainwash the child, getting them to believe anything that you want them to believe."  
  
"I am aware of the benefits of brainwashing, Shawn. My concern is that you will respond this way to any threat to the life of another. Your heart was soft when I found you." Leaning closer, Giovanni said, "Is it still soft?"  
  
If anyone else was in his position, they would have surely panicked. Of course, Shawn knew that that was the worst mistake that he could make. His eyes laughed as he smiled at Giovanni and said, "Over the past year, I have served you. I have not hesitated to use my pokemon to trample all those who would oppose you. I have cleaned their blood from my uniform so often that I've gone through five of them. If there was a soft spot anywhere in my heart, my stomach would have forced me to resign long ago."  
  
This drew a snicker from the boss, a snicker that developed into a chuckle that developed into roaring laughter. As soon as he had calmed down enough to speak, he said, "Excellent explanation, Shawn! Excellent explanation." There was nothing that could get Giovanni in a better mood than a good joke about gore. Taking a drink from his glass, Giovanni quickly sobered himself. "I wish we had more time for such pleasantries, Shawn, but we will be reaching headquarters shortly, and there is a much more pressing matter that I must discuss with you."  
  
Shawn was immediately alert. It had to be something very important, or very dangerous, if Giovanni was wanting to "discuss" it with Shawn before the rest of the Executives heard about it. Rocket Executives were the elite Rocket members that were the select few chosen by Giovanni, himself, to take care of important matters that he could not get to in order to deal with them personally. "What is it, sir?"  
  
"As you are well aware, when we were still in the Pokemon dimension, we discovered that the pokemon known as Porygon2 has the ability to open portals between dimensions." Giovanni leaned back in his chair, as if recalling the memory of something truly great. "Ah, you have no idea, Shawn, how exhilarating it felt when I found out that there were other worlds out there that could be tamed and harvested! Just think! Thousands, no, millions, of planets, ready for the taking, ready for me to mine them all, making fortunes off of their natural resources! We immediately began searching for the best dimension for us to take over first."  
  
"And, lucky us," Shawn said with a smile. "We were the first one on your hit list, right?"  
  
Giovanni redirected his gaze from the ceiling to Shawn's face. "Exactly. Yours was the one with the weakest military. Yours was the furthest behind in technology. Yours had no pokemon that you could use to defend yourselves with. Granted, we could have taken another one, but, when exploring and experimenting, it is best to start small, is it not," he asked with an evil grin on his lips. Of course, it was a rhetorical question, and he quickly went on without waiting for a response from Shawn. "The Porygon2's ability was so unique that we were unable to build a machine that could duplicate the process that it used to open a portal, so we were forced to use it, instead. We massed a strike force, had the Porygon2 open the portal, then we followed it through. I think you pretty much know what happened after that. However, after the invasion, we still used the Porygon2 for getting supplies from our world and sending resources back. Two hours ago, though, the chamber that we were keeping the Porygon2 in was found empty."  
  
"What?!" Shawn sat up straight as a board. The pokemon escaped? This was serious.  
  
"That's right, Shawn. In the last two hours, every available member of Team Rocket has been scouring the base in search of that pokemon, but we haven't turned up a trace of it. That is why, right now, all Rocket Executives are gathering in the meeting room at headquarters. The Executives will take charge of the search, organizing it and spreading it out over a wider area. All of them, except for you. Shawn, I am going to trust you with the responsibility of overlooking the entire search. Every member of Team Rocket will be at your command. You will assign search teams, areas, party leaders, and instructions. This is a big, and very important, job, Shawn. It would be in your best interests not to let me down."  
  
"Sir, please forgive me for doubting you, but it's not like you to give such responsibility to one person without giving them a partner to help and to make sure they don't abuse the honor of such trust."  
  
"Once again, you are exactly right, Shawn. That's why you will be working with Agent 009 on this mission."  
  
"What," Shawn cried for the second time on this flight. "You're sticking me with Domino? Sir, with all due respect, she'll be all over me! I can't stand her, you know that!"  
  
"Shawn, that is exactly the reason why I'm putting you two together. We cannot be a truly powerful force if we can't work with our own teammates. Besides, she really does like you. If I hadn't put her with you, she would have shocked me with that electric tulip of hers. You know what they say, Shawn. `Nature has no fury like that of a woman scorned.`"  
  
"You're doing this just to torture me, aren't you?" The only reply Shawn received was Giovanni's sadistic grin that said that his guess had hit the mark, and he was enjoying every moment of it.  
  
{Giovanni, sir, we will be reaching headquarters in five minutes.} The call came over the helicopter's intercom.  
  
"Very good," Giovanni spoke into the microphone beside his chair. "Prepare for docking immediately."  
  
"Sir," Shawn said, a thought having occurred to him, "what if the Porygon2 has escaped to another dimension?"  
  
All signs of emotion evaporated from Giovanni's face. His features were as hard as stone, but his eyes had lit up like Christmas tree lights. "Don't even suggest such a thing. Without the Porygon2, I am stranded in this dimension without any link to my own dimension. No one, human or pokemon, leaves Giovanni, leader of Team Rocket, stranded!"" He suddenly tightened his grip on his glass, so tight that he shattered it. He didn't even notice it. As the expensive scotch poured down his hand, he said again, as if to emphasize the impossibility of it, "NO ONE!"  
  
* * *  
  
As the most technologically advanced association on their own planet, Team Rocket was light years ahead of its own world. In Shawn's dimension, it was out-and-out Star Trek. Every time he walked into the headquarters meeting room, he was astounded by what he saw. Computers were everywhere. There were lights flashing, hard drives buzzing, machines beeping; the whole works. One would expect it to be quite noisy in the room, but it wasn't. This was mainly due to the fact that it was a room the size of a football field, with the computers lined up neatly against the wall, with the exception of one part, where the wall was taken up from floor to ceiling with a giant, flat screen monitor.  
  
All talk immediately ceased when he walked in. It wasn't because of his status in Team Rocket - everyone in the room was an important Rocket executive. It was because he was the only one of them from this dimension. In their eyes, he was an outcast, unworthy of anything that they received.  
  
He walked along the table, looking for a seat. Unfortunately, every single one of them was taken. No, not all of them, he thought as he caught a slight gesture from the corner of his eye. There was one left, the one right beside Domino. Apparently, she had deliberately saved it for him, and she was now making small gestures with her finger, indicating that she wanted him to come over there. Cursing silently to himself, he obeyed, simply because there was no other option.  
  
After a few minutes, Giovanni walked through the door and up to the podium in front of the screen, his inevitable Persian walking regally behind him. Knowing his role, Shawn stood up and saluted, yelling, "All hail Giovanni! Salute!" Immediately, everyone in the room was on their feet and saluting.  
  
"At ease. Thank you, Shawn." Giovanni paused as everyone sat down again. "You all know what has happened, and you all know why you are here, but for all of you too dense to figure it out, I'm going to tell you." This wasn't necessary, of course. Everyone already knew the score, but Giovanni wanted to make sure that they all knew his score. "The Porygon2 has disappeared, and it is your heads if you don't find it. Is that clear?"  
  
"Sir!" came the affirmative shout.  
  
"Good. Now, let me introduce the Executives that I have chosen to lead the search. Shawn! Domino! Get up here," he snapped, gesturing to the two of them. Silently and obediently, they stood, walked over and onto the stage, and snapped to attention beside Giovanni, blankly staring at the rest of the room. "Now," Giovanni continued, "I have given them complete authority. From now on in matters pertaining to the search, their words are mine, and you will treat them as such. You will bow to their every whim. If they say, "Jump," you ask, "How high?" If they say, "Dig," you say, "How low?" If they say, "Run," you don't ask, "Why," you say, "How fast?" Any act of insubordination will result in swift and painful punishment. Is that understood?"  
  
"Sir!" the Executives shouted again. They may not have been pleased with this development, but they would be crazy if they thought about arguing with it.  
  
"Good," he said again, "because, now, they're going to tell you what sort of grudge duty you'll be spending the rest of your time on until you've found that pokemon. There will be no breaks, except what are deemed absolutely necessary by the three of us." The room echoed one last affirming shout, and Giovanni sat down in a chair off to the side, leaving Shawn and Domino to take over, who spent the last fifteen minutes of the meeting assigning groups, areas, leaders, and shifts.  
  
* * *  
  
The search had been going on for three hours, and Shawn was miserable. They hadn't found anything that even suggested what might have happened to the Porygon2. He was beginning to think that his weekend plans with Kat had been shot. He was silently moaning over this when he saw one of the Grunts sit down and lean against the wall, refusing to continue the search. Not because he was tired, Shawn observed, but because he felt like it.  
  
"Something wrong?" Shawn asked, coming to stand a few feet in front of the man.  
  
"Nothing's wrong," the man sneered. "I'm just sick of taking orders from local trash like you."  
  
Shawn's eyebrow twitched at this, his anger triggered. In one quick movement, he grabbed the whip that he wore at his side, swung it back, letting it unravel in the air, and smoothly snapped the man's ear clean off with it. It was so fast that it took a few seconds before the man even realized what had happened. When he did, he clapped his hand over it, and screamed in pain, the blood leaking out from between his fingers and around his hand.  
  
Turning to another Grunt, he ordered, "Get a bandage over that wound, and make sure that it's tight, otherwise it won't stop the bleeding." Immediately, the second grunt obeyed. "As soon as he stops bawling," Shawn continued, "he can start washing the floors with the rest of the insubordinate children, which had better be under ten seconds, or else he's going to lose the other ear!" Abruptly, the man stopped bawling, forcing himself to be content with muffled sobs.  
  
"Another one?" Domino had walked up behind him. "Shawn, I know they're giving you a hard time, but if you don't find something else for them to do, the floor's going to be so clean, it'll be slick enough for ice skating." Shawn pretended to ignore her, suddenly finding looping his whip back in place the most interesting thing in the world. "Shawn Rae, are you listening to me?"  
  
"Yeah, I hear you. As long as their blood is on the floor, they'll have plenty of cleaning to do."  
  
Domino was taken aback suddenly. Something about the way Shawn was acting unnerved her. He's just doing his job, she kept telling herself. But he never did it this way before. He had always treated his charges with care, saying that the better condition they were in, the better they would be able to do their duties. Now, he was cold, hard, and ruthless, the perfect Rocket, and completely un-Shawn-like. "Shawn, what's wrong with you," she asked softly, true concern seeping into her voice like honey.  
  
"I'm fine," he growled before stomping off down the hall toward the room where the Porygon2 had been kept. Domino promptly followed him on his heels.  
  
"Shawn, what are you hoping to find in there? We've searched in there a hundred times. There's nothing to be seen."  
  
"WE'VE searched a hundred times," he said testily. "I haven't." But when he entered the room, what he saw made his jaw drop open. The machines in the room continued to run, maintaining the exact conditions that were present when the pokemon escaped as if it was still there. The "prison" that they had been keeping the Porygon2 in was nothing more than a force field bubble, generated by two identical columns on opposite sides of the bubble. "They kept it in this? What were they thinking? They were practically asking for its escape!"  
  
Domino stared at him. "What are you talking about? You're the one that suggested this to Giovanni when they found that they couldn't keep it in a pokeball."  
  
"Yeah, but I didn't think that he would take me seriously. I expected him to be smart enough to make revisions, maybe paralyze it, or something. That would have kept it a lot better than just a bubble!"  
  
"They feared that paralysis would have interfered with its ability to control the interdimensional portal, so they just kept it asleep until it was needed." She answered automatically, more out of habit than anything else. She was too shocked to do anything else. She had always liked Shawn because of the way he was able to keep his heart true among all of the coldness of Team Rocket. Because he had the strength that she lacked. But, now, it seemed that he had finally collapsed and given in to it all. "Shawn, what's wrong with you," she asked again, hoping and praying that it was just stress.  
  
"I told you once already, Domino. I'm fine!"  
  
Now he had made her mad. Did he really think that he could lie to her like that? "It's obvious that something's wrong, Shawn. I don't know what it is, but I know that it's making you act really strange." She had gotten herself started, and now she couldn't stop. She took it one step further, probably, she would think in retrospect, a little too far. "Judging from your temper lately, I'd almost be willing to say that you've been spending too much time around Giovanni!"  
  
Suddenly, Shawn stood straight as a board. Then, quickly and with all of his anger behind him, he spun around, grabbed her by the shoulders, and slammed her up against the wall. "Don't ever let me hear you compare me to Giovanni again! I am nothing like that monster!"  
  
Domino could have retaliated, breaking his grip, kicking him in the stomach, and knocking him to the floor. She would have, but there was more than just anger in his eyes, she noticed, as she stared at him. There was a tear. As she watched, it welled up, flowed over the side of his eye, and rolled down his cheek, dropping off of his chin to land on the floor, leaving a little wet spot on the tile. Suddenly, all of her anger evaporated, leaving her feeling sorry for this boy that she knew so much about, and yet knew so little. She realized with a feeling like revelation that it had just been a year and a half ago that his whole world had been turned upside down, and only a year since his mother had been killed. All of this must have reminded him of it all, scraping talons down wounds that had barely been scabbed over. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Shawn. I didn't stop to think what kind of feelings this search could scrape up in you."  
  
He relaxed his grip on her, straightened up, and returned his arms to his side. Turning away from her again, he said, "Forget it. Sorry about blowing up."  
  
She felt like there was something else she should say. Unable to think of it, she said the only thing that came to her mind. "If it makes any difference, Shawn, you've handled it better than I ever could have."  
  
"Thanks," he said, for lack of anything better to say. "Huh?" He jerked his head up, looking at the bubble. Had he just seen what he thought he'd seen?  
  
Walking up to him and rubbing her shoulder, she said, "What is it?"  
  
"I don't know, but I thought I saw something. Wait, there it is again!" There was a flash of green, like grass, shining through the bubble in a small sliver, then it was gone again.  
  
Suddenly, the two were a flurry of action. "Shoot! That's a portal! How did they miss that?" Domino swore, running for the door to reach a radio where she could contact Giovanni. At the same time, Shawn ran toward the opposite wall, punching a button on an intercom.  
  
"Lower the force fields," he barked at whatever scientists were supposed to be watching the room. In a matter of moments, the force bubble shimmered and disappeared.  
  
A few minutes later, Domino returned with Giovanni at her side, once again with his Persian beside him. Shawn stood up from where he had been drawing a chalk circle around where the portal was. "Giovanni, sir," he said, saluting, "I believe we've found something!"  
  
"Amazing," Giovanni said, more to himself than to Shawn and Domino. "It must have formed it before it was put to sleep."  
  
While Giovanni was talking, the Persian, with its natural cat curiosity, slowly walked up to the portal, obviously able to see it much better than the humans. It sniffed it. It got a little closer, then went to sniff it again. On the second time, however, the vacuum nature of the portal grabbed the Persian by the whiskers and almost sucked it in.  
  
Shawn, who had been watching the lion-like cat with amusement, was immediately on the move. He grabbed hold of the Persian's tail and planted his feet for stability, trying to pull it back, but the pull of the portal was too strong. Before either Domino or Giovanni could react, the two of them were yanked through the portal to who knew where.  
  
"No," Domino cried, starting to run after them, herself, but Giovanni put a steady hand on her shoulders, staying her.  
  
"I know that you want to go after him, but there's things that we have to do first. If you go now, you will only cause problems. You have no idea of where you'll end up, or if you'll be able to get back. Remember, Porygon2 can fly. That portal could have appeared fifty feet in the air." Thinking of Shawn dropping fifty feet to his death from where a few moments ago there had been solid ground made Domino visibly cringe. Giovanni set his other hand reassuringly on her other shoulder. "Go gather the Executives. It's time for another meeting."  
  
Domino's shoulders shook as she struggled with her sobs, but she nodded, allowed herself one sniffle. She then forced herself to composure, and strode out the door with as much command in her form as a girl who could have just lost her one true love could muster.  
  
Giovanni watched Domino leave, then turned around to stare at the portal. If he were to be perfectly honest to himself, he would have noted that he was more than concerned for the welfare of his beloved Persian, and, to be brutally honest, with that of Shawn, as well.  
  
Sighing, he turned around and walked out of the room, forming his speech for the Executives in his head as he went.  
  
* * *  
  
Everything he saw was dark. He felt like he was swimming in black ink. Memories of people floated past his eyes. Pictures of his mother, his grandparents, his father, his school, and his friends flew up to him, stopped as if to speak with him, and moved on. One, however, the last one, did stop. It was his mother, just as she looked before she left for the ill-fated protest that took her from him.  
  
Her smile was sweet, and her eyes were soft. "Ah, my boy! How you've grown! You could do with a different outfit, though."  
  
"Mom?"  
  
"Yes, honey, I'm here."  
  
"But I thought you were dead."  
  
His mom just smiled. As she did, the blackness dissolved into a room, their old living room. "Have a seat, honey, you look beat."  
  
He did, the sofa feeling as soft as he remembered it.  
  
She sat in her chair, right next to him. He could smell her perfume, a sweet, flowery smell that always comforted him.  
  
"It looks like you've got your work cut out for you."  
  
"Yeah," he said, and found himself spilling out everything about the Porygon2, about how it had gone through the portal, and he had no idea where to find it.  
  
His mother smiled again, and said, "That's not what I meant. That's only what brought you here. You are gifted, honey, and, as with any gift, you have to use it responsibly to help others. In your heart, you know what that job entails."  
  
He bowed his head. "You're talking about Giovanni."  
  
"Yes."  
  
"But I'm not strong enough to defeat him. I can't even get his gym badge."  
  
His mother got up and walked over to him, laying her hands on his shoulders and sitting beside him. "There are other things that are important besides badges. You are relying too much on brute strength, and not enough on the power of hope and friendship. Look," she said, gesturing with her hand. When he looked, there were his pokemon. His Nidoking, Machoke, Alakazam, Blastoise, Fearow, and Scyther were all there, and they were all cheering him in their own calls. His heart was warmed immediately. He saw what his mother was trying to tell him. They were more than his pokemon, or even his partners. They were his friends, and they followed him, not because he was some strong Rocket, but because they believed in him, and they trusted him.  
  
"You see, honey, you already have your friends, who are willing to move the planet, itself, if it will help you. And there are allies other than the ones you can find in pokeballs. All you need is hope."  
  
At this, he looked at her questioningly. "What do you mean? Who are you talking about?"  
  
His mother looked downcast for a moment. "I probably shouldn't tell you this. There is a boy that can help you. He is a boy of several dimensions, much like you are, and he is a guardian of them all, just as you must become." This time, when he looked up, there was a boy standing there. Actually, it was two halves of what looked like two separate boys that had been put together. One had a baseball cap with a pokeball on the front, pulled down over dark, shaggy hair, and wore a red jacket and a glove with the fingers cut off. The other half wore something that resembled a cross between a fishing hat and an overturned bowl. Although his hair was also in a state of disarray, it was bright blonde, coming down over a sky blue eye. It wasn't exactly how he had pictured them, but he recognized them immediately. Before he could say their names, however, they disappeared again. "Find their friends, and they will lead you to them."  
  
Suddenly, his memory caught up with him. "Mom, where am I?"  
  
"You are in a place in between dimensions," she said, looking sadder than ever. "Physically, you are unconscious. Because of that, your mind was free enough to float. Even though you are out of the portal, you are near enough to the entrance that I can reach you. As long as you're asleep." She said this last with almost a sigh.  
  
"You mean I'm waking up?"  
  
"Starting to. We still have a little more time, I think. That is, if your sleeping habits are still the same. It used to take me a good five minutes to wake you." A sad smile seeped onto her lips as she remembered the time they had together. "There are a few more things that I need to tell you, honey. The first thing you'll realize when you wake up is where you are. Don't worry, your money will work there. Unfortunately," she said, once again scowling at his outfit, "They aren't too fond of Rockets. You're going to need a change of clothes. These may be a little snug now, but they should do the trick." She reached behind her back and pulled out a set of his old clothes: a blue shirt, blue jeans, socks, shoes, and underwear.  
  
As he looked at the clothes, he felt his logic growing stronger. Time was definitely growing short. He couldn't help but ask, "Mom, is this real?"  
  
She smiled as a tear rolled down her cheek. "As real as you are, honey. Now, come here and give me a hug before we have to go."  
  
They stood up and hugged each other tightly, neither one wanting to let go.  
  
"I don't want you to go, Mom. I miss you so much."  
  
"I miss you, too, honey. More and more each day. I don't want to go, either, but neither of us have a choice. You be good, okay?"  
  
"Okay, Mom."  
  
For the rest of the time, they stood there and hugged each other. After a few minutes, his mother started to fade. "Goodbye, honey. I love you," she said, one of her tears falling into his hair.  
  
"Bye, Mom. I love you, too."  
  
She stroked his hair, and he got one last sniff of her perfume, and she was gone, and the blackness surrounded him again. He stayed in the same position, as if his mother was still there in his arms. He cried. For the first time in over a year, he really cried. All of the grief that he had held back for all this time poured out of him. He had no more strength to hold it back. Slowly, the tears began to slack, then stopped altogether, but for a long time, he sat there and let his dry sobs rack his body. Just because his eyes were dry didn't mean that he was done crying. Slowly, the darkness started to flow, brushing up against him. It felt like gentle waves. No, he thought, it felt rough, like a tongue. Like a cat's tongue.  
  
* * *  
  
Shawn's eyes snapped open just as the Persian's tongue was coming up his cheek again. Sitting up, he pushed the big cat off of him. When he did, it sat back on its haunches, looking at him as if it were concerned about him. "Did I worry you, Persian? I guess I made a lot of noise, didn't I?" The Persian responded with a series of fretting mews.  
  
Shawn stood up slowly, looking around at his surroundings as he did. He was in the middle of a forest. Here and there, on the limbs of trees and in the grass, he caught glimpses of what he was sure were Caterpies, little caterpillar-like pokemon that were fairly harmless. There was only one forest that he knew of where wild Caterpies could be found. He was in Viridian Forest. "Well, Persian, it looks like you're home." The pokemon meowed in response, the way only a big cat can. Now that Shawn was standing, he realized that his right arm felt heavier, for some reason, than normal. Looking at it revealed why. In his right hand was the set of clothes that his mother had given him. He almost dropped them in his shock. Instead, he lifted them to his face. They still carried the smell of his house.  
  
* * *  
  
Shawn stood at the northern exit to the forest, dressed in his extra clothes. He had changed in the forest. He had bundled his uniform together so he could take it with him, but, on a second thought, left it behind in case anyone happened to come through after him. He inhaled deeply, enjoying the fresh air as he oriented himself. To his east would be the northwestern entrance to Diglett's Cave. West, and on the other side of the forest, would be Victory Road, and the mighty Elite Four, the most powerful trainers in this world. To the south, through the forest, would be Viridian City. And, to his north, directly ahead of him, would be Pewter City, Brock's hometown. Find their friends, and they will lead you to them, his mother's words echoed in his head. Well, it was a good place to start.  
  
* * *  
  
Back in the forest, a redheaded girl and a black-haired boy were walking back from Pallet Town. Something caught Red's attention, and she motioned to Black to stop. They gasped as they saw that it was a Rocket uniform. Rummaging through it revealed an I.D. card. It said, "Shawn Rae."  
  
"We didn't see anyone on our way here," Black said, "so he must have headed toward Pewter City."  
  
"Yeah, must have," said Red. "We better hurry and see if we can find him. If he's a Rocket, he can't be up to any good."  
  
Black looked back at the clothes. "Too bad that wasn't a girl," he said, then, "Yow!" as Red brained him with a branch that had been laying at the side of the path.  
  
* * *  
  
Shawn walked around town aimlessly. There were a lot more buildings, obviously, than there were in the game that he was so familiar with, but he knew where everything important was. There were signs everywhere that pointed to it. It wasn't that he didn't have anywhere to go; he wanted to head to Brock's gym, where he would surely be, but, for the last half-hour, he had been sure that someone was following him. Ever since he left the restaurant, where the flirting waitress had asked his name, someone had been following him. It was a small town, and there weren't that many people out, anyway. At first, he just tried to lose them. Now, though, he was curious just who would be willing to follow him for this long. At several instances, he had caught their voices. He knew that there were two of them, one male, one female, both probably teenagers or young adults. Slowly, as he walked around town, forming a mental map of the city, he developed a plan. This was the second time that he took this street, and, if his memory served him correctly, what he was looking for was right on his left.  
  
Taking the turn, he muttered, soft enough to be to himself, but loud enough that they would be able to hear him, "Gotta find somewhere to sit. I'm beat." He now faced a dead end. On his left was a fire escape, the end of the ladder just low enough for him to reach it. Grabbing hold of the bottom rung, he climbed up with his hands until he could get his feet on it, then scrambled up to the landing, where he could watch them come around the corner. Sure enough, two people, a black-haired boy and a redheaded girl, walked around the corner.  
  
"Huh?" The redheaded girl looked puzzled. "I was sure he went this way."  
  
"I told you it was a dead end," raved the boy. "But did you listen to me? No!"  
  
"Oh, shut up! You know just as well as I do that this is the way he went. You just won't admit it!"  
  
"I won't admit it? This is my hometown. I know it like the back of my hand!"  
  
"Well, then, why don't you just look at the back of your hand and tell me where the guy went?"  
  
"I have a better idea. Why don't I just tell you?" Shawn said from his perch, causing the two to look around. He dropped off of the fire escape, landing gently on the ground. "Or, better yet, we can have a nice Q & A, and you can tell me why you've been following me." They turned around, and Shawn's jaw almost hit the ground. "I know you! Misty and Brock!" He tried to say more, but Misty cut him off.  
  
"Yeah, that's right! And don't think that those clothes fool us, either. We found the clothes you left in the forest, and we know that you're part of Team Rocket!"  
  
"Hey, look! That's not why I'm here!"  
  
"Yeah, save it for later, creep! Just tell us the truth," Brock ordered, as he grabbed a pokeball from his belt, and Misty followed suit. "Otherwise, we're going to squeeze it out of you!"  
  
Oh great, Shawn thought. How am I supposed to get out of this one?  
  
* * *  
  
In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:  
  
Faced down by Misty and Brock, the Water and Rock gym masters, Shawn Rae's identity has been discovered. Will he be able to convince them of his purpose, and get them to help him find what he's looking for? Or will he be joining his mother sooner than expected? Find out next time in Chapter 3 - A Strange Alliance! 


	3. A Strange Alliance

Author's Note: Thanks to The Changer of Ways here on FanFiction.net for his help with putting this story together. I was having trouble writing it, and he was kind enough to suffer through repeated suggestions of mine and help me come up with something worth reading. Please read and review. Be sure to tell us both what you think. Remember, I want BAD reviews. I want EVIL reviews. I want to know what it is you HATE about this story. So start sending in those reviews! All of you who are eager for Ash/T. K. to make his entrance, just hold on. It's coming. I promise. Really, it is. You've got to believe me on this. It's not in this chapter, but it's coming. Trust me, it is. (Dodge cane from side of stage) Come on, guys, you've got to believe me! (Tries to dodge cane again, but it gets author by the wrist and pulls off stage. Grabs at stage floor) It's coming!!! (Shouting like a madman) It's coming, and there's nothing you can do about it!!! (Insane laughter. Sound of cane hitting author on the head and author falls to the floor.)  
  
Chapter 3  
  
A Strange Alliance  
  
"Well?" Misty tossed her pokeball up and down in one hand like a baseball. "Are you going to talk or not?"  
  
Shawn said the first thing that came to mind. "I'm looking for Ash!"  
  
Ash's name seemed to catch them both off guard, as if he had said something that should never be mentioned, especially by a stranger.  
  
"What do you want with Ash?" Brock stood with his arms crossed and a pokeball in one hand. Shawn realized that neither the game nor the cartoon showed how strong he really was. He had a good six inches on him, and Shawn was considered to be quite tall. Shawn was also considered to be muscular, but Brock probably had fifty pounds on him there, too. All things considered, when Brock was angered, he formed a very menacing figure. And at the moment, Brock was fuming. Every line on his body said that he wanted to rip Shawn limb from limb. He made a mental note never to cross him if he could help it. Although it seemed a little late for that now.  
  
Since he had already blurted it out, Shawn decided to go with it. "Giovanni has taken over my dimension, and I need Ash's help to stop him." Shawn immediately regretted taking that route, noticing how truly stupid it sounded.  
  
"A new dimension, right," Misty said, grinning sardonically. "Now, you want to tell us the truth? Last chance."  
  
"It is the truth!"  
  
Brock gripped his pokeball in a death grip. "I've had enough! If you won't talk, then I'll make you! Onix, go!" He threw the pokeball up into the air as he and Misty both jumped back. In a flash of red light, his Onix appeared right in front of Shawn, its rocky, boulder-sized segments spinning in opposite directions as it landed on the ground. Brock turned to his Onix, and said, "Onix, don't be tricked by his clothes! This guy's a member of Team Rocket! He won't tell us what he's up to, so why don't you see if you can convince him to talk?"  
  
Onix turned around to face Shawn. He heard a low rumble start in whatever represented the colossus's throat. Then, in one jerk, it shot its head right in front of Shawn, and let out a mighty roar. The gust from the rock snake's throat sent Shawn flying through a pile of trash bags and up against a brick wall. Onix picked him up by the collar of his shirt and brought him around to hang up above Brock.  
  
"So, are you ready to tell us the truth, yet, Rocket," Brock demanded.  
  
Shawn grunted from the pain of the impact that still flowed through him. "I already told you the truth. I came here to find a way to stop Giovanni, not to help him!"  
  
"I don't believe you!" This time it was Misty. She threw her pokeball up into the air with a back kick of her leg. "Starmie, I choose you!" Out came the starfish pokemon, its two halves spinning in opposite directions before coming down to hover in front of Misty and wait for instructions. "Use your water gun on him, Starmie. Not enough to hurt him," she warned, grinning evilly. "Just enough to make him sputter."  
  
Obediently, Starmie flew up in front of Shawn, and started spraying pressurized water in his face. Shawn closed his eyes against it. It felt like someone was using a sand blower on him. Unfortunately, he couldn't do the same thing with his mouth. In a matter of moments, he found himself gasping for breath, only to suck down water, which made the urge to breathe even worse.  
  
"Okay," Misty said, "that's enough, Starmie!" Thankfully, the spray immediately stopped, and Onix brought him down in front of Misty and Brock again.  
  
"Well," Misty asked sweetly, partly out of sarcasm, partly out of pride for her water pokemon.  
  
Shawn was about to deny them again, but then he struck on another thought. He chuckled low, as if he was really getting a kick out of something. "Who's acting like Team Rocket now, huh? Torturing someone for information is what they do best, is it not? And yet, here you are, battering me with your pokemon trying to get me to talk, and I haven't even raised a hand against you. I understand that there is a law against punishing people for something they haven't even done yet, and all I've done since getting here is change my clothes and get a bite to eat." He smiled widely, a charming smile, the one he used when negotiating to woo his subjects. He focused it on Misty. "Unless, of course, there's been a law made about eating out. There hasn't, has there? I mean, if there was, where could a guy take a beautiful girl like yourself out?"  
  
Initially, it had the desired effect. Shawn had a silver tongue, had wooed his way out of many dangers, and had plenty of practice. Misty went starry- eyed, saying, "You hear that, Brock? He wants to know where a guy could take a beautiful girl like me out!" She put an overbearing amount of emphasis on the word, "beautiful."  
  
"Don't listen to him, Misty," Brock ordered, immediately seeing what Shawn was doing. "He's playing with your ego!"  
  
A look of shock passed over Misty's face, but not over the fact that Shawn was playing her. She turned angrily to Brock, saying, "Are you saying that I have an ego problem? Because I don't! I am the most beautiful girl in the world, and there is no ego problem about it!" She emphasized her point by hitting him in the head every time she said, "ego," "problem," and "don't." Then she went starry-eyed again, saying, "Is it so hard to believe that a guy would think that I'm pretty, and would want to ask me out?"  
  
Shawn, Starmie, and Onyx all sweat dropped, listening to this. Shawn couldn't believe that the two of them, friends and partners that they were, couldn't even get along.  
  
"Yeah, whatever," Brock replied to Misty. Then, turning to Shawn, he yelled, "But one thing you are wrong about is how we act. We are nothing like Rockets. We've seen what they do in their heartlessness. Onyx, throw him in with the rest of the trash."  
  
Onyx obeyed, and, once again, Shawn found himself on top of the trashcans and up against the brick wall.  
  
Shawn stood up as fast as he could, with all of the pain that was running through him. Could this really be the Brock and Misty that everyone who had ever played or watched Pokemon had heard of? Could their experiences really have changed them this much? "You know," he said, "In my dimension, before Giovanni came there, Pokemon was nothing more than a popular cartoon and video game series. You two were two of the three main characters, and there were hundreds of fan clubs devoted to each of you. You were role models. But now, I wonder how all of those people who idolized you would respond if they knew that, in your anger and hatred of Team Rocket, you had become the very people you fought to stop."  
  
Brock exploded. "I've had enough of your mouth! I think it's about time to shut you up! ONYX!"  
  
Onyx threw its head up and roared, then backed up and charged at Shawn in a full-blown tackle.  
  
Nasty images of what whatever was left of him would look like after that giant rock snake hit him flashed through Shawn's mind. There wasn't a doubt in his head. He was going to die.  
  
Before the Onyx could get to him, there was a flash of red light from Shawn's belt, and out of that flash appeared a dinosaur-like pokemon. It roared its own reply to Onyx's battle cry as it stood ready to defend its partner. It grabbed Onyx's great head in both of its arms, and, giving a great cry, threw it high up into the sky.  
  
"Wow," Misty said, impressed for the instant. "What an arm!" Then, as the details of the giant pokemon became visible again, "Uh oh. It looks like Newton was right. What goes up must come down. Ugh!" she said as Brock jumped on her to get them both out of the way and the mighty pokemon came down in a crash.  
  
"Nidoking!" Shawn yelled in surprise. It must have broken out of its pokeball.  
  
Nidoking turned around and grunted, giving him a look that said, "I'm not going to let you die that easily!"  
  
Brock ran over to his Onyx. "Onyx!" he yelled. "Onyx, are you okay?"  
  
The rock pokemon groaned, a sound like a mountain creaking, but then slowly got up, standing on the back of its tail so that it stood at its full height. Nidoking and Shawn both backed up a step, looks of shock on both faces.  
  
"What!?" Shawn yelled. "How could anything survive a fall like that?"  
  
"Get them, Onyx," Brock yelled, confident now that his pokemon was okay. Immediately, Onyx charged again.  
  
"Nidoking, Barrier. NOW!" Already, the dinosaur was putting up the shield. Onyx hit the barrier with a mighty crash, causing the whole thing to shake like a pool. Shawn suddenly realized that the only thing between him and doom was a mental wall thought up by a pokemon whose species wasn't exactly known for their intelligence. For a split second, he was sure that the rock snake was going to tear through the fragile barrier like tissue paper and kill them both.  
  
Amazingly, the barrier held, but barely. It looked incredibly thin, and, as Onyx backed up for another attack, Shawn knew that he had to do something. "Nidoking!" he yelled. "Focus your energy and use your Hyper Beam! If he gets another hit in, we're done for!"  
  
Nidoking turned its attention from the doomed Barrier and, putting its gigantic claws together in a sphere on one side, it started focusing its energy. Suddenly, the air around Nidoking seemed to burst into flames as the great dinosaur pokemon glowed with a bright light.  
  
Onyx was coming fast. It was going to be close, and Shawn was praying that Nidoking would have enough power to stop the mighty pokemon, and, more importantly, that it would be able to do it in time. "Nidoking, hurry up!"  
  
Nidoking grunted in response as a yellow ball of light began to grow in between its hands. The Onyx crashed into the Barrier once again, but this time, it shattered like glass into a million pieces and disappeared, but the rock snake kept coming.  
  
"Nidoking! NOW!"  
  
The dinosaur pokemon brought its hands around in front of it and fired a great blast of energy just as the Onyx closed the final feet between them. The Onyx slowed down until it stopped inches from their faces. Shawn could see small pieces of rock breaking off and disintegrating off of the great colossus's face. Then he saw its eyes. He could see that it was in pain. He bowed his head. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.  
  
Then, as if someone had hit a rewind button, the great rock snake pokemon flew back and over Brock's head. It crashed into the building across the street and didn't move. Brock ran over to it again, yelling, "Onyx," but this time, it didn't get up.  
  
Shawn let out a deep breath that he didn't know he had been holding. Bending over and putting his hands on his knees, he said, "We did it, Nidoking! You did it. I only wish that there had been another way."  
  
Nidoking turned halfway and gave him a faint smile, then a soft cry fell from its lips and it fell to the ground, first to its knees, then to its stomach.  
  
"Nidoking!" Shawn was at his pokemon's side in a moment. "Nidoking, what's wrong?" The pokemon only laid there, breathing heavy.  
  
Misty came up beside him hesitantly. "Your Nidoking is exhausted. It put all it had into defending you. All of its heart and strength was put forth to defend you. It just doesn't have any more to give. Return it to its pokeball and come on. We'll show you to the nearest Pokemon Center."  
  
Shawn broke into tears. His Nidoking was willing to die for him. "Thank you," he said as he pulled the pokeball off of his belt and Nidoking returned to it in a flash of red light.  
  
Brock, having his Onix return to its pokeball, stalked over to Shawn and Misty. "You aren't suggesting that we should help him now, are you, Misty? After what he did to my Onix?"  
  
"Are you so blind, Brock," Misty yelled, "that you can't see what is so obvious in front of your own face? He didn't fight back until you went in to kill him! And even then, he wouldn't have if it weren't for his Nidoking! And another thing, you saw the way that pokemon fought to protect him! It gave everything it had to defend him. You, of all people, should know that that kind of friendship, that kind of DEVOTION, doesn't come from a relationship based on cruelty. You should have seen him cry, Brock. He loves his pokemon, just like you and I do, and they love him in return." She started to calm down, and finished, "That's why I trust him, and why you should trust him, too." She crossed her arms over her chest, taking a stance that clearly said that it was an order, and that it was final.  
  
Brock hunched over and sighed, saying, "I guess you're right, Misty."  
  
Misty was once again her arrogant self. "Yep, that's right. And when I'm right, I'm right, and, well, let's face it. I'm always right!"  
  
Brock and Shawn both sweat dropped, and Brock said, "Whatever." Then he walked over to Shawn and said, "Just so you know, I still don't trust you as far as I can throw you, so you can consider yourself on probation. If you even look like you're thinking about doing something wrong, I'm going to be on you before you know what hit you, do I make myself clear?"  
  
"Crystal," Shawn said as he threw Brock a mock salute.  
  
* * *  
  
As the three came in through the door of the Pokemon Center, Brock and Shawn already prepared with the pokeballs of the two injured pokemon in hand, the live-in nurse was on them in a flash. Immediately, she was out from behind the counter, her pink hair bouncing behind her.  
  
"So it was you two who were causing all of the ruckus out there," she started before the door had even slid shut behind them. "You ought to be ashamed of yourselves. You are so lucky that that building was abandoned. Even so, you still gave us a start here. How do you expect sick pokemon to get better with racket like that all of the time. Well, don't just stand there," she said, taking the pokeballs from their hands, "give me those pokemon so I can start treating them. Follow me," she said as she went into another room. "I'm not done with you yet. Oh, Brock, by the way," she said, suddenly softening up, "we're so glad that you're back. Your father has been worried sick about you. Not to mention that those kids are such a handful. He loves them to death, but the numbers are against him."  
  
As they followed her into the other room, Shawn whispered to Brock, "Let me guess. That's Nurse Joy. Is she always this way?"  
  
Brock shook his head as he whispered back, "No, we caught her on a good day."  
  
"Oh, great," Shawn sighed.  
  
"I heard that," Nurse Joy called over her shoulder. "Now, hurry up!"  
  
"Man, she's got good ears," Misty muttered as they ran to catch up with her, Giovanni's Persian loping along lazily behind them.  
  
* * *  
  
Misty sat staring at the Persian as it nonchalantly lapped up the last bit of a bowl of warm milk that Shawn had gotten it.  
  
Shawn sighed. "Okay, Misty, I give. You've been staring at that cat for the last hour, and you're starting to freak me out. Would you mind telling me what it is that's going through your head that could keep you entertained for so long?"  
  
Misty broke her gaze, closing her eyes and rubbing her temples with her fingers. "I don't know. It just seems like I've seen that particular Persian before, but I can't figure out where."  
  
Brock came up from behind them, holding a cup of coffee in each hand. "Sure looks regal, though, doesn't it," he asked as he handed Misty a cup and sat down to sip at the other. "Look at how glossy its fur is. It has been treated well. It probably belonged to a very rich person."  
  
Misty's eyes shot up suddenly as the answer came to her. "Say, Shawn, that Persian doesn't happen to belong to, uh, you know . . . ?"  
  
Shawn looked uneasy. "Yeah, it belongs to, uh," he hesitated as his eyes darted to Brock, around the room, back to Brock, then back to Misty, "the Boss."  
  
Brock leaned forward over the table. "What are you doing with Giovanni's Persian?"  
  
Shawn grinned really wide and scratched the back of his head. "It, uh, kinda came through the portal with me."  
  
When Brock had come over with the coffee, Misty's Togepi had woken up, and Misty had taken it out of her knapsack to let it play on the Pokemon Center floor. Now, Misty looked up from where Togepi was playing near the Persian. "The portal? So, you mean that what you were saying about coming from a different dimension was true?"  
  
Shawn nodded. "Completely and utterly."  
  
"So how was it that you ended up going through it," Brock asked, ever cautious of anyone who had ever worn a Rocket uniform.  
  
Shawn sighed and leaned back in his seat. "It's a long story. Are you sure you want to hear it?"  
  
"Well, according to Nurse Joy, we still have a few more hours before you and Brock's pokemon are ready," Misty answered, picking Togepi up and feeding it a piece of fudge. Togepi, of course, gobbled it down, gurgled happily, and begged for more, which Misty was more than happy to do. "There you go, Togepi! Now, no more, or you're going to get sick." Togepi gurgled happily again, then started squirming. Misty set it down again, and it went back to playing.  
  
Shawn smiled as he watched the Baby pokemon entertain itself. "Togepi is definitely the cutest pokemon of all."  
  
Misty smiled as she watched Togepi. "Yeah, I agree." Then she turned back toward Shawn. "But you're still trying to dodge the question."  
  
"Fine, okay. I'll tell," he said as he leaned forward again, and he told his story from the beginning.  
  
* * *  
  
Shawn had just finished telling his story when Nurse Joy came back out into the lobby, carrying two pokeballs. "Okay, you two," she said, "your pokemon are all better. From now on, though, you're going to have to make sure that you don't push them so far."  
  
Brock and Shawn both bowed their heads and sighed. "Yes, Nurse Joy," they said in unison as they took their pokemon back. She may have loved pokemon, but when it came to their trainers, she was strict, and there was no arguing with her.  
  
"So," Misty said once Nurse Joy had left the lobby, "what do we do, now?"  
  
Shawn closed his eyes and rubbed them. It had been a long day, and he was exhausted. "I don't know. All I know is that I have to find Ash. He's the only one that can help me save my dimension." He opened his eyes again and stared at them both beseechingly. "Come on, you guys are his friends, right? You have to know where he is!"  
  
Brock held his head, elbows on the table. "That's just the problem. He's not here."  
  
"Of course he's not here, Brock! That's why I need to know where he is!"  
  
Brock stood up suddenly, and slammed his fists down on the table. "You just don't get it, do you, Shawn. He isn't here! He isn't anywhere on the planet! He's gone!"  
  
"He's in another dimension," Misty mumbled, barely loud enough for them to hear, her eyes cloudy and unfocused. "As another person."  
  
Shawn's jaw fell slack as the realization hit him. The vision of the halves of two boys put together returned to him. "T. K."  
  
The eyes of both Brock and Misty snapped to him. If the name of Ash was sacred to them, the name T. K. was one of the foulest words of all.  
  
Shawn, though, was oblivious. In his own mind, he was putting the pieces together. A boy of several dimensions. Not just one, or two, but several. The Pokemon Dimension, The Digimon Dimension, and the Digital World, itself. A guardian of them all. A protector of the three. A Digi- Destined, and a Pokemon Master. One thing still didn't seem to fit, though. Why was he two people?  
  
"I think it's time," he said, "that you tell me your side of this story."  
  
Brock nodded, then turned to Misty. "Can you handle it, or do you want me to do it?"  
  
"No, that's okay, Brock," Misty said, close to tears. "I can do it."  
  
She rubbed her eyes in an attempt to clear them, then began.  
  
"Ash wasn't from this dimension. When he was just a little kid, and he was still in his own dimension, he was with other people, a different group. I think he called them Digi-Destined, or something. Anyway, their so-called destiny was to defend another dimension from evil. To travel to that dimension, they used these weird little computers.  
  
Anyway, they had won, and they had returned home. He, T. K., was walking down the street some time later, when a car came out of nowhere and hit him, knocking him into an alley. When they went to find him, the boy was gone. Somehow, that little computer had sent him across dimensions. When he woke up, he was, apparently, in the middle of Viridian Forest. Somehow, he managed to wander all the way to Pallet Town, where Mrs. Kechum found him, fixed him up, and, when no one came to claim him, adopted him. When nightmares that tormented him at night got so bad that he couldn't even look at himself in the mirror, she dyed his hair and got him colored contacts. He had amnesia, so she named him, herself, and he grew up as Ash Kechum.  
  
You are probably already familiar with most of the rest of the story, about how he got Pikachu as his pokemon, and began his quest to become a Pokemon Master. I'll skip by that.  
  
One day, though, some memory came back to him. Not much. Just his real name and that he didn't belong here. He insisted that we call him T. K., and we did. After all, he was our friend, and finding out that he was regaining memory that we never knew that he had lost was one of the happiest things that we ever knew.  
  
Then they came. The people from his other life. They insisted that he come back with them, and they took him. They brainwashed them and they took him. Or so we thought, and assured ourselves, was true. He had gotten all of his memory back, and he wanted to go back to that life, because that was where he thought he belonged. He insisted that we go back to our own dimension because we didn't belong there, and we did. We left because he chose that life, and that girl! That Kari!" The last name she said with such venom that Shawn actually jumped back away from the red head, for fear that she was going to lash out. But she calmed down again, only to break down in tears.  
  
"Excuse me," she said, and went to get a tissue.  
  
When she got back, she asked again, "So what do we do?"  
  
Brock stood up again, purposefully, saying, "We don't have much of a choice. We're going to have to go find Ash again. That means that we're going to have to go back to Pallet Town and get that Dimension Ball of Professor Oak's again."  
  
Shawn and Misty stood up. "Well, what are we waiting for," Misty asked as she put on her knapsack, careful not to wake Togepi. "Let's get going!"  
  
Suddenly, Nurse Joy burst back into the lobby, pulling a cart with three cots, blankets, and pillows. "Oh, no, you don't! You three just stop right there! Do you have any idea how late it is? It is way past your bedtime, that's for sure! You are all staying here for the night!" Already, she was setting out the cots in a corner out of the way.  
  
Shawn, though, was eager to get going. "Please, Nurse Joy. We need to get going! You have no idea how important this is."  
  
"I don't care how important it is," she said as she pushed him down on one of the cots, threw a blanket over him, then proceeded to do the same to Brock and Misty. "I take just as good a care of my trainers as I do my pokemon, and I won't have anyone running off in the middle of the night! Whatever it is, it can wait until morning when you've had a good night's sleep!" She went over to the doorway and put her hands on the light switch. "Good night, you three!"  
  
"Good night, Nurse Joy," the three said resignedly.  
  
* * *  
  
In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:  
  
Shawn has met up with Misty and Brock in the Pokemon dimension, and has found out the story behind Ash's strange double identity. Now, the three have agreed to go to Pallet Town and find a way to get to his dimension. What awaits them in Ash's hometown? Will they be able to find a way to the Digimon Dimension? If so, how will they convince T. K./Ash to help Shawn? Find out all this and more in Chapter 4 - Old Friends Reunite!  
  
Sorry it took so long, people. Since starting this chapter, I've been tied up in finals and all of the other stuff that comes with the last year of high school. Hopefully, now that I've graduated, I'll be able to have more time to work on this stuff. Please forgive me for taking so long, and I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think.  
  
Ninmast 


	4. Meganiums and Portals

Author's Note: I enjoy reading your reviews, regardless of what they're about. Like I've said before, I want the bad reviews, too. I don't care if you just don't like the wording of something. Let me know. If you think that I am wrongly representing a character, let me know. If I made a mistake in describing something, let me know. Especially if I make a mistake in describing something. A lot of you probably noticed the mistake with the length of the Gyarados in the first chapter, and one of you pointed it out to me. I appreciate that. That's what this site is for. If I ever make a mistake like that, let me know. Once again, thanks, and read and review. Also, some of you will notice that I've been e-mailing you when it gets posted. Basically, I've just been going by who has been there the most. If you want me to just leave you alone, just let me know, and I won't bother you again. On the other hand, if you want to know, once again, just let me know through your review, or via e-mail. I check both of them regularly, and I'll be more than happy to let you know when I post another chapter. Well, I've taken up enough of your time with my long- windedness, so, without any more delay, let's get this show on the road!  
  
Chapter 4  
  
Meganiums and Portals  
  
Shawn, Misty, and Brock made their way back through Viridian Forest the next day. Soon after entering, however, Shawn stopped.  
  
"Hold on a minute," he said as he walked off of the path. "I want to check on something." Slowly, with Misty and Brock on his tail, he made his way back to the portal as best as he could. The problem was that the portal had become invisible once again.  
  
"Shawn, can't we move on yet," Misty complained after a while. "We've been walking for an hour now, and Togepi isn't exactly light." She poked her thumb over her shoulder at the egg pokemon sleeping peacefully in her knapsack.  
  
"Like you have room to complain," Brock scoffed as he shifted his pack for the hundredth time. "You aren't carrying an entire kitchen on your back."  
  
Instead of answering them, Shawn just flopped down on a stump with a sigh, the Persian mimicking him in a convincing plop to the ground.  
  
Misty walked over and sat down beside him. "Is something wrong, Shawn?"  
  
"I can't stop thinking," he answered, "that if the portal has disappeared again, what if I'm not able to find it again? What if I'm never able to get home?"  
  
Misty put her hand on Shawn's shoulder, but didn't say anything. Shawn was reminded of the last time that a girl had tried to comfort him. It had been Domino, and her method had been to throw herself all over him. Somehow, he found Misty's quiet reassurance much more comforting.  
  
Suddenly, the Persian got up, stuck its nose up in the air, then reared back and hissed. It had gotten a whiff of something it didn't like.  
  
Shawn snapped out of his thoughts to look at the pokemon as the three of them stood up, hands automatically going to pokeballs. Even Togepi snapped awake and started fretting.  
  
"What is it, Persian?" Shawn asked as he looked around, ears sharp for any noise that might suggest a threat. The Persian only continued to crouch and hiss. Suddenly, it cried loudly as if it had been startled, then it bolted. "Persian! Come back," he yelled, fruitlessly.  
  
"I don't like this, Shawn," Misty said, taking a few steps back. She looked like she, too, had seen a ghost.  
  
"Yeah, me neither," Brock agreed. His face was solid as stone, but his pokeball hand was twitching horribly. "I think maybe we should take Persian's example."  
  
"I feel it, too," Shawn answered. "Let's get out of here before whatever it is happens."  
  
They ran in the direction that the Persian had taken as fast as their legs would take them, and they never looked back.  
  
* * *  
  
It was good that they didn't look back, because, only minutes after they left, less than 100 yards behind them, something did happen. Something that changed the look of the entire forest within a circle twice that size. It started as just a spark in midair, but the spark got bigger, and bigger. The forest around it bent and twisted, as if someone had thrown a rock in the pool of the universe, and the ripples were distorting everything. Suddenly, as the spark reached massive proportions, so large that it could be seen in distant Saffron City had it been dark, it imploded, disappearing completely. In the next instant, everything turned gray as the shockwave exploded, destroying everything in that circle, and, only minutes before, Shawn and the others had been sitting a mere 100 yards away from the epicenter.  
  
After the blast faded away, in the center of the destruction, an electric, blue, shimmering orb now floated a foot above the ground. Through it stepped a brown pokemon with two spoons. "Kazam!" it yelled as it tripped, not anticipating the difference in height between the portal and the ground. It got up as quickly as possible, then looked around. When it didn't see anything, it called back into the portal. "Ala! Kazam!"  
  
Out of the portal stepped a blonde girl in a black Rocket shirt and a tight, white skirt. "Good job, Alakazam," Domino said as she sent the psychic pokemon back to her pokeball. "I can't believe they closed the portal off! He said he didn't want anyone doing anything stupid by going in there, but he knew he couldn't stop me from going after my beloved Shawn, so he had it sealed." She looked around at the destruction ripping open the portal had caused. She giggled happily. "Now look what he made me do!"  
  
From the edge of the clearing, where the blast had stopped, a teenage boy and girl stumbled into the circle. "Come on, this is where that weird blast came from!"  
  
Domino snapped to attention, then jumped behind a large boulder that had somehow managed to survive the blast.  
  
As they came up to where she was, she heard the girl speak. "Wow! What could have caused such destruction? It's horrible!"  
  
"Yeah," the boy agreed. "All of the trees are gone. Not even the stumps are left." He knelt down on the ground and reached his hand down. It went down to the wrist before he stopped and pulled it back out, with a fistful of fine, gray dust. "It's like a miniature nuke hit, or something."  
  
"Oh, my gosh!" the girl screamed from up ahead.  
  
The boy was up in an instant and ran to her. "What's wrong," he called as he ran, but when he caught up with her, he gasped, and skidded to a dead stop.  
  
"What is it," the girl asked as she stared at the blue orb, shimmering as white bolts like lightning danced across its surface.  
  
"I don't know," the boy answered. "It doesn't look solid. I wonder," he continued as he reached out toward the orb.  
  
Suddenly, Domino jumped out from behind her rock. "I wouldn't touch that if I were you, boy!"  
  
"Whaaaa! A Rocket!" the girl screamed as she ducked behind the boy.  
  
"What are you crooks doing here," the boy yelled as he reached for a pokeball on his belt. "Pidgeotto, go!"  
  
Domino smiled, and, before the boy could throw the pokeball, her tulip whip was wrapped around his wrist, sending electricity through him. She watched as he seemed to glow in the whip light as he shuddered and shook. When she had enough of it, she released him with a flick of her wrist.  
  
As the boy fell down, smoking slightly, the girl backed away, staring at him, horrorstruck. Then she looked at Domino, just in time to see the whip fly at her as it wrapped around her waist and knocked her out in the same way.  
  
After she was done, Domino walked over to the girl and kicked her in the side to make sure she was out. "Hmph! 'Whaaaa! A Rocket,' indeed! It's always nice to know that you're popular. Obviously, if I plan to go around here on my own, I'm going to need a different set of clothes." She bent down to the unconscious girl and pulled her head up by the hair. "What do you say, sis? You seem to have a good sense of style, and you look like you're about my size, too. Care to make a donation?"  
  
* * *  
  
On the other side of the forest, Misty, Brock, and Shawn sat, panting, against a large oak.  
  
"What in the world was that explosion?" Misty asked.  
  
"I don't know," Brock answered, "but whatever it was, I'm sure glad that Persian sensed it in time to tip us off."  
  
"Yeah, we all are," Shawn gasped. "I just hope he got away alright."  
  
They heard mewing sounds from behind them, and, as they turned to look, the Persian came around from the other side of the tree and walked up next to them.  
  
"You don't know how happy we are to see you, big guy," Misty laughed as she scratched the big cat behind the ear. "You actually saved our lives back there. Any idea what that was?" She had asked the question only jokingly, but when she did, the Persian ran back off behind the tree. In a few minutes, it came back and dropped a bundle of clothes in Misty's lap. "Huh? What's this?"  
  
She unwrapped it, and the shirt fell open to show a red R on the breast.  
  
"That's my uniform!" Shawn yelled in surprise.  
  
Brock looked over Misty's shoulder. "Yeah, you're right. I recognize it now. It has that nasty mustard stain on the bottom of the shirt." He turned to Shawn with a grin on his face. "You must be a pretty messy eater!"  
  
Shawn put his hand back behind his head and grinned as he sweatdropped. "Actually, my girlfriend did that. You see, she was having trouble getting the mustard to come out of the bottle. She picked it up and shook it real hard while she was squeezing it, and, lucky me, I was in the line of fire when it came unplugged."  
  
"I know what you mean," Brock said, then turned to Misty. "Didn't Ash do that once?"  
  
She put her finger on her chin as she thought. "No, I think that was Pikachu, and it was with ketchup."  
  
"Oh, yeah, you're right."  
  
They both sighed as they remembered the times they spent with Ash.  
  
Shawn, however, was troubled. Something about the Persian bringing his outfit tugged at his mind. All of a sudden, it hit him, and he turned to the Persian. "Persian," he said, urgency making his voice loud, "are you trying to tell us that it was the portal? Has Team Rocket come through the portal?" The cat nodded energetically with its big meow. He picked up the bundle of clothes and stood up. The suddenness of his motions made Misty and Brock snap out of their reverie.  
  
"What's going on?" Misty stood up, too, careful not to shake Togepi too much.  
  
"Rocket's coming through the portal. That means they're here looking for me. If they find me with you guys, we're all dead meat." He looked down at the bundle in his hands. "We have to find a way to get rid of these clothes. They've got tracers sewn into the fabric."  
  
Brock stood up now, shouldering his backpack. "Well, then, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"  
  
* * *  
  
Domino walked along the riverbank, staring at the scanner in her hand. She had changed into the clothes from the girl. Now, she was dressed in a white midriff tee shirt and hip-hugging blue jeans. She had stashed her own clothes, along with the tools she had brought with her, in the backpack she had snatched from the boy. Her hat, however, she had kept on her head. She had had the hat for as long as she could remember, and she would never leave it behind.  
  
"Okay," she said to herself as she walked, "if I'm reading this right, Shawn should be ..." She pulled a map out of the backpack and opened it up. Her eyes moved from the scanner to the map as she compared the two. She smiled widely as she found her answer. "On the shore of the lake up ahead! Oh, he'll be so happy to see me!" She put her finger under her chin as a thought occurred to her. "You know, we both have some vacation time coming up. Maybe we could just stay here for a while. We could rent a hotel room somewhere. But it would have to be one with a hot tub. Oh, yeah, that would be nice." She continued to plan out the vacation to the smallest detail. She planned it out even to the color of the wallpaper that their room would have to have, and the food that they would enjoy as they watched the sun set in the evening.  
  
As she rounded the last bend of the river as it flowed into the lake, she saw what looked like somebody sprawled out on the shore at the water's edge. Someone in a black shirt. She stopped as she took in the scene. Tears welled up in her eyes. "Shawn!" she yelled as she ran toward the form. The tears were so thick in her eyes that she didn't see what it really was until she got up to it and bent down to hug it. It was definitely Shawn's uniform, but it was wrapped up in sticks, branches, and weeds that had flowed down the river. She reached down to touch it, relieved that it wasn't him, but dreading where he might be or what might have happened to him.  
  
"Wait a minute," she told herself as she thought of something. "Shawn's smart. He would have known that he couldn't go walking around wearing a Rocket uniform. Surely, he would have traded it off for something else. After all, whose to say that he didn't do the same thing I did?" She remembered that he had a wallet that his mother gave to him. It had the same importance to him that her hat did to her. He wouldn't go anywhere without it. "So reach down there and check," she told herself. "If it's not there, you'll know that he's okay." She didn't allow herself to think about what it would mean if the wallet was still there. Cautiously, as if the uniform was going to come to life and attack her, she reached her hand into the pocket that he always kept his wallet in. It came out empty. "Yippee!" She jumped up as she shouted. "He's alive!"  
  
As she jumped, she noticed that one pant leg was heavier than the other. "Huh?" she said as she looked down. Clinging to her leg with a look like it was just in an earthquake was a little, green Caterpie with only one antenna. "Oh, go away, you nasty little thing," she said as she went to brush it away. As she pulled her hand back, though, it spit at her hand and stuck there, swinging back and forth as she pulled it up to her eye level. It rolled its eyes over at her, and for a moment, they just stared at each other. Domino stared at it as if she couldn't be more disgusted if it was a ball of puke. The Caterpie, however, stared at her with wide friendly eyes, and wiggled as if trying to get over to her. Domino snapped out of it, then swung her hand to fling it off of her. It didn't work, but the Caterpie got the idea. It's eyes shut a little way, making it look sad as it wiggled its way down, spinning more web so it wouldn't have to jump. When it reached the ground, it crawled off about six feet, then turned around and looked at her.  
  
"That's right, you disgusting, little worm," she yelled at it. "Go away and leave me alone! I don't want anything to do with you!"  
  
It turned around and crawled a little further, then turned around suddenly and spit at her, sending a ball of webbing that hit her right in the face.  
  
"You little jerk!" she yelled as she reached up to pull it off and ran after the Caterpie. "You're going to pay for that!"  
  
The Caterpie seemed to smile. "Pi!" it called as it turned and crawled off as fast as it could.  
  
* * *  
  
Brock, Misty and Shawn had been walking for what seemed like hours. Since the explosion, they had completely lost track of where the path was, and now they were wandering through the forest trying to find it again.  
  
"Oh, great," Misty complained, noticing the sun dip ever lower toward the horizon. "Why does this always happen to me? Why do we always get stuck in the middle of the wilderness, away from even a shower? Why can't we ever get lost in a city, where we can rent a room in a hotel, with a pool, a hot tub, feather beds, room service, and a continental breakfast?" Suddenly, she threw her hands up in the air and yelled, "Why can't I ever meet a cute guy that WON'T get us lost?"  
  
Brock and Shawn stopped and sweatdropped, both of them blushing.  
  
"You know," Brock whispered to Shawn, "you'd think that after all of this time I've spent travelling with her that I'd be used to these outbursts."  
  
"You mean it doesn't get any better?"  
  
"Nope. Even in the middle of nowhere, she's embarrassing."  
  
Misty was a way ahead of them now. She stopped and turned back to face them. "Are you guys coming, or what? We can at least find a soft place to make camp before nightfall!"  
  
"Don't be ridiculous, Misty," Brock said, his hand behind his head. "Nightfall won't be for another three hours, at least!"  
  
"Great! I can look forward to another three hours of walking through a bug- infested forest before I roll out my sleeping bag on top of sticks and stones."  
  
Shawn just sat back and listened to them argue back and forth. He was starting to get used to it. Their arguments were becoming less and less surprising as he came to realize them as just how they talked to each other.  
  
All of a sudden, he got a whiff of something that smelled familiar. He would recognize that smell anywhere. It smelled like Kat. She spent so much time around her Meganium that, even away from it, she smelled like the aroma that sprouted from the pokemon's neck. Turning around, he was only slightly surprised to see the pokemon in question. It could hardly the one that belonged to his girlfriend, but it was a Meganium, nonetheless.  
  
"Meg! Megan," it said, gesturing with vines in a direction.  
  
Misty and Brock came up behind him. "Whatcha lookin' at, Shawn?" Misty asked lightly.  
  
"A Meganium," he answered softly.  
  
Brock looked around. "I don't see anything. Where is it?"  
  
Shawn pointed at it. "Right there."  
  
Misty looked where he was pointing, but turned back to Shawn and put her hands on him. "Uh, Shawn, there's nothing there."  
  
"Sure there is," he said, not even a doubt in his mind. "It's standing right there."  
  
"Meg! Megan," it said again, and went off into the forest in the direction it had been pointing.  
  
"I think we should follow it," Shawn said, and immediately set off after it.  
  
Brock and Misty looked at each other, then followed after him. "Shawn," Brock called, "Shawn, there's nothing there. You're following a hallucination."  
  
Shawn ignored him and continued to follow the Meganium. If he ever lost sight of it, all he had to do was follow the scent, and he would find it waiting for him to catch up. Misty and Brock followed him, constantly trying to convince him that what he was following wasn't there. After little less than half an hour later, however, Shawn broke out of the forest line and onto a path. On the side of the path, there was a sign with an arrow pointing in the direction that he was going. The sign read, "Viridian City." Sitting next to the sign was the Meganium, once again seeming to be waiting for him.  
  
He got down next to it. "Hey, Meganium! How did you know where we needed to go?"  
  
"Meg!" It turned it's neck off to one side, showing a piece of paper tied around its neck by a string.  
  
He reached for it, but, to his surprise, the Meganium didn't bolt. It only sat there, waiting. "Is this for me?"  
  
"Meg," it nodded. He took the string with the letter off of the pokemon, and when he did, it said, in a sweet, high voice, "Kat was worried about you."  
  
He stared at it for an instant, but before he could react, Misty and Brock burst out of the foliage behind him. He turned to face them as he heard them come.  
  
"Shawn!" Misty cried when she saw him. "The way you were running, we thought we would never be able to keep up with you.  
  
"Guess what?" Shawn demanded excitedly. "You may get your hotel room after all! The Meganium led us to Viridian City!"  
  
Brock went up to Shawn and said gently, "Shawn, there is no Meganium. I don't know why you saw it, but it wasn't real."  
  
"What are you talking about? It's right ." He turned around to show them, but the Meganium was gone. "Hey, where'd it go?"  
  
"Weren't you listening, Shawn?" Misty asked. "You were seeing things. It was never there!"  
  
"Of course it was," he replied, holding the letter out. "It had this note for me attached to its neck!"  
  
Misty took it from his hand, then held it up to his nose. "That smell . It smells a lot like Ash's Chikorita.  
  
"If you think that's odd, come look at this," Brock said. He was standing over by the sign. "Shawn was right. Whatever it was that we were following, it led us out of the forest."  
  
"What do you mean, 'whatever it was?' It was a Meganium! I saw it with my own two eyes! I smelled it! I heard it! It talked to me, for crying out loud!"  
  
Brock and Misty stopped what they were doing and stared at him. "You mean," Brock said slowly, "it spoke its name, right?"  
  
"No. Well, it did that, too, but it also spoke to me. It said that Kat was worried about me."  
  
Misty tilted her head quizzically. "Who's Kat?"  
  
"That's my girlfriend that I told you about. She's the Grass Gym Leader in my world. Her main pokemon is a Meganium."  
  
Brock turned to Misty. "How is this possible? Neither of us saw the Meganium, but not only did it lead us out of the forest, it also delivered a note to Shawn."  
  
"Stranger stuff has happened, Brock," Misty answered, still holding the letter up to her face. The soothing aroma was no doubt the only thing keeping her from flying off the handle. "Remember how that one girl, with the power of the Unown was able to change reality, itself? Or how that prophecy about the legendary birds directly referred to Ash? Or that girl's ghost that tricked guys into following her?"  
  
Brock stared at Misty. The disconnected effect that the scent was having on her was unnerving him greater than he thought it should. Could the effect really be that strong? Or was it something else? "Yeah, I guess you're right, but we saw that with our own two eyes."  
  
She continued to hold the note up to her face. "So did he. Sometimes you just have to believe."  
  
Shawn was also starting to get uneasy. Something wasn't right. "Misty, you must be tired. Let's head on into town and see if we can't find somewhere to sleep."  
  
Together, Brock and Shawn guided Misty down the trail, the whole time while she was holding the letter, still up to her face.  
  
The Persian looked around, as if trying to find something that was barely there, then gave up, loping to catch up to the others.  
  
* * *  
  
Gary looked out the window of his room above the Viridian City Gym where he had lived by himself since becoming the Gym Leader. He was bored. He found himself missing the battles he had against Ash. "Ash," he thought. "How long has it been since I battled him? Three, four years? Longer?" He would never admit it to anyone, but, as much as he talked down about Ash, he was the only one who had really ever given him a challenge. Not even that kid a while back, the first one to ever get his gym badge since he became Gym Leader, had provided him with a challenge. The kid won, but he had pulled some punches. He closed his eyes as he remembered. Yeah, he had taken it easy on the poor kid because the Pokemon Federation had been on his case for keeping them from having a good showing at the Pokemon League Tournament. Actually, they had to cancel it that year because no one from the Kanto League could make it to Victory Road. Naturally, they had blamed him. He rolled over on his bed and grinned. As if it was his fault that nobody was as good as he was.  
  
He turned back toward the window and looked out. Down below, he saw three people walking down the street. He moved closer to the window. That looked like . Yeah, it was! It was Misty and Brock! There was a dark- haired guy with them, too. Something clicked in his mind. The only dark- haired person they traveled with was . "Ash!" he yelled as he grabbed his pokeball belt and ran downstairs.  
  
* * *  
  
Shawn and Brock were still having to guide Misty when they entered town. Shawn turned to Brock and whispered, "There's definitely something wrong with her. I get the impression we could leave her in the middle of an intersection, and she wouldn't even care enough to move."  
  
"Yeah, I know," Brock whispered back. "It's like she's stoned, or something. Do you think it could be that letter? It was around the Meganium's neck, right? So it's got to be strong."  
  
Shawn shook his head. "No, it can't be that. We're awfully close to it, too. If that was doing it, we would be affected, too, wouldn't we?"  
  
"Yeah, maybe you're right. Maybe she's just really tired, or something. Let's just find a place to spend the night, then see how she is in the morning."  
  
"Yeah, that sounds like a plan."  
  
"Ash! Hey, Ash, wait up!"  
  
They stopped and turned toward the voice. Running toward them at full speed was Gary, pokeballs in hand. "What's going on around here," Brock asked. "Does he think you're Ash?"  
  
Gary ran up to them, then suddenly slammed on the brakes when he saw that Shawn wasn't who he thought he was. "Wait a minute, you're not Ash!" He almost looked disappointed.  
  
Shawn smiled and held out his hand. "No, I'm not. My name's Shawn. Shawn Rae. You must be Gary Oak. It's a pleasure to meet you."  
  
Gary was suddenly himself again. He turned sideways and crossed his arms, ignoring his hand. "Yeah, I'm sure it is. After all, it isn't every day you meet a real Pokemon Master!" He had gotten his hopes up for a pokemon battle, though, and, when he saw the balls on Shawn's belt, he gave in to temptation. After all, he thought, I went to the trouble of bringing my pokeballs out here. I might as well not waste it. "Tell you what," he said to Shawn, still looking away. "I came out here ready for a battle, but the person I wanted to go against wasn't here. How about you go against me in his place? Not that I expect you to beat me, of course. I won't ask the impossible. So, what do you say," he finished, turning back toward Shawn, "You wanna go?"  
  
Shawn looked at Misty, who was still spaced out. "I don't know. There's something wrong with Misty, and we need to get her somewhere where she can get a good night's sleep."  
  
Misty turned and smiled at them, an airy, insubstantial smile that barely seemed to be there. "There's nothing wrong with me. I feel fine. Don't turn him down because of me. It'd be against your honor to turn down a pokemon challenge. Especially from him."  
  
Gary stared at Misty. "I see what you mean." Then he was arrogant again. "Tell you what. In the chance fluke that you actually do the impossible and beat me, I'll let you stay in my place above the Pokemon Gym, right over there," he said, pointing a block back to the building. "I've got spare beds. It should be good enough."  
  
Shawn looked to Brock for advice. "Do it, Shawn," he said. "This may be the best chance we get."  
  
"Fine," Shawn turned to Gary. "I accept."  
  
Gary smiled. "Good. It's getting dark out here, so let's go back to the gym. We can battle in there where there's lights."  
  
"Let's make this quick," Gary said when they were standing in the gym's stadium. "Some of us need to get to bed. One-on-one pokemon battle. If you're too dense to know what that is, we each choose one pokemon to battle with. Whichever pokemon wins the match is declared the winner of the battle. Understood?"  
  
Shawn nodded, his hand tense at his side. This was no doubt going to be the hardest battle he had ever been in. Gary was every bit as good as Ash, if not better. And Ash was better than Giovanni, and Giovanni was better than Shawn. His only hope was if he could anticipate what pokemon Gary was going to use. What was his main pokemon? Darn! It had been so long since he had seen the show. It was a form of Eevee. When he first used it, he used it at night, against a psychic pokemon. That meant that it was the dark one, Umbreon. That meant that, if he was right, he should use . Quietly, he moved his hand over the appropriate pokeball. He looked over at Misty, and said a quick, silent prayer that he had chosen correctly.  
  
"Okay, kid! Make your choice!"  
  
Shawn's eyes narrowed. Gary was a year younger than he was! Still, this battle was too important to let his attitude get to him. Silently, he pulled the pokeball off of his belt, then watched as Gary did the same.  
  
Brock went up to the side of the ring to act as referee. "Pokemon," he yelled, "GO!"  
  
Shawn was on edge, and he got his throw in first. "Machoke, I choose you!"  
  
Gary was about to throw his, but when the muscle-bound superpower pokemon appeared, he flinched for an instant before yelling, "Umbreon, go!" The tough Dark pokemon came out reared back and spitting. "Umbreon, you're Dark attacks are going to be useless against him, but he's slow. Focus on outmaneuvering him, then tackle him!"  
  
Shawn knew that his opponent was going to be fast, and he knew that he would have to play his cards right to be able to catch him. "Machoke, wait until I give the word, then be ready to Counter him." Machoke got into a fighting position, readying itself as well as possible for the attack.  
  
"Umbreon," Gary shouted, "go!"  
  
Shawn watched as Machoke tensed at the rush of the oncoming pokemon. "Wait for it," he said quietly. He waited until he saw Umbreon bend back further, preparing to jump. As the pokemon pushed forward, he yelled, "Machoke, now!"  
  
Machoke had been on needles. It reacted faster than it probably should have. It turned toward Umbreon, its right fist already swinging. Umbreon jumped just as Shawn thought it would. The Umbreon's head and Machoke's fist connected in an instant. To Shawn, everything seemed to slow down for that moment. Umbreon's head tilted sideways with the blow of Machoke's fist, then the slow motion was over, and as Machoke followed through, so did the rest of the Umbreon. It flew sideways across the rectangular ring, and slammed up against the wall, then fell to the ground.  
  
"Yeah!" Shawn shouted as Gary fell to his knees. "Way to go, Machoke!"  
  
"Don't get excited just yet, Shawn," Brock called from the side of the ring. "Look!"  
  
On the floor, Umbreon rolled upright, and, grunting, struggled back to its feet.  
  
"What!?" Shawn yelled. "You made him into a pinball! How could he still get up after that?"  
  
Umbreon was obviously battered, but it slowly, mincingly, limped back over to Machoke. It cried as it reached back to scratch it, but it lost its balance and fell over on its side, where it laid there with its eyes shut and its chest heaving.  
  
"Umbreon is unable to continue the battle," Brock called as he held his arm up in Shawn's direction. "Machoke wins the match."  
  
Machoke turned toward Shawn as he ran up to the pokemon. They high-fived each other as they reached each other. "Way to go, Machoke," Shawn congratulated the pokemon as it proudly flexed its muscles.  
  
Gary walked up to his Umbreon and picked it up in his arms. "Are you okay, tough guy?" Umbreon opened its eyes a little and licked his nose in answer. "Good. Have a good night, Umbreon," he said as he returned the pokemon to its pokeball. He smiled as he turned to Shawn. "It's really my fault I lost. I should have had it outside so he could heal, but he can't use Moonlight inside. Well, I guess a deal's a deal. I'll show you to your rooms."  
  
They got up to the room where they would be staying, and set their stuff down.  
  
"Ah," Shawn sighed as he flopped down on his bed. "I never thought I'd be so happy to be in a real bed." He looked up at Misty, who was just standing where they had left her when they came up, still holding the letter up to her face. "Hey, Misty, are you okay? I mean, aren't you tired, or anything?"  
  
She smiled her airy smile at him. "I'm fine, Ash. Thanks."  
  
"Huh? Ash?"  
  
Brock and Gary came through the door, each with a bundle of blankets. Brock looked at the way Shawn was staring at Misty and asked, "What's wrong?"  
  
"She called me Ash. The weird thing is she doesn't even seem to realize she did it." Shawn walked over to Misty and took her by the arm. "Perhaps it's time to go to bed, anyway." He grabbed her nightgown from a table and handed it to her. "Why don't you go get changed, and then you can take a nice, long sleep." He gave her a slight push in the direction of the bathroom, expecting her to go the rest of the way.  
  
After a few steps, however, she stopped, then started to take off her suspenders.  
  
Suddenly, the room was full of panic. Brock rushed up and caught her hand before she could finish. "Why don't you do that in the bathroom, Misty?" He guided her the rest of the way, then shut the door behind her, telling her, "Knock on the door when you're done, and I'll come and get you, okay?" He walked back over to the table in the middle of the room and sat down. "There is definitely something wrong with her," he said as he buried his head in his hands. "I only wish I could find out what."  
  
"I've never seen her like this," Gary said from his own seat. "Granted, I haven't seen her very much, but this is nothing like the person I met. It's almost as if she's turning into an invalid."  
  
"Or withdrawing into her own head," Shawn added, deep in his own thoughts.  
  
Before they could ask him what he meant, there was one light knock on the bathroom door. Brock went and guided her to her bed, where, after instruction, she laid down and obediently closed her eyes, still clutching the letter in her hands. She was so still, however, that they could not tell if she really fell asleep or not.  
  
The three of them stayed awake for awhile afterwards, none of them really ready to go to sleep just yet, worries over Misty occupying their thoughts, though they never said it. They talked about other things, whatever managed to work its way through.  
  
Eventually, after a long period of silence, Gary turned to Shawn. "Your pokeballs, I've never seen any like them before. You're not from around here, are you?"  
  
Shawn smiled. "You have no idea."  
  
"Well, fine," he huffed. "Please, by all means, inform me, oh Great One."  
  
"You got any coffee? It's a long story."  
  
It was Gary's turn to smile. "I'll go make some."  
  
Shawn told him the entire story. When he was done, however, Gary was still curious.  
  
"You didn't tell me why you're with Brock and Misty. You said you were looking for Ash, but why isn't he with them?"  
  
"I'm afraid that's not my story to tell. If you want to hear it, you're going to have to ask Brock."  
  
Gary turned to Brock. "Should I go make another pot of coffee?"  
  
"No," Brock laughed, quietly so as not to disturb Misty. "This should last us. Mine isn't quite as long." He told him about Ash being from a different dimension.  
  
"Gosh," Gary said when he finished. "I always knew Ash was a space case, but I never knew it was literal!" He leaned forward and counted off his fingers. "So, let me get this straight. You guys plan to go to Pallet Town and ask my grandfather to let you use his Dimension Ball, or whatever you called it. Then you plan to go to this other dimension where pokemon don't exist, but people who use things called Digimon do. There, you plan to find Ash, who now goes under the name of T. K., who is one of these Digi- Destined, and get him to come back to this dimension. Then you plan to send him and Shawn back to his dimension so he can play hero and chase off the nasty Team Rocket like he did before?"  
  
"That's an awfully cynical version of it," Brock answered, "but, yes."  
  
Gary sat back and nodded for a moment, then said, "I'm coming with you."  
  
Brock and Shawn sat up. "What," they both cried in unison.  
  
"Come on, you really think that weaklings like you could pull something like that off on your own? You wouldn't stand a chance. You'd get lost, squashed, and scared and you'd start crying for your mommies in no time."  
  
Shawn pulled his head out of his hands and got up. "It's your call, Brock. I'm too tired to do any more thinking tonight. I'm going to bed."  
  
After Shawn was asleep, Brock brought up another thing that had been on his mind. "Shawn's a good trainer, but yesterday, he was barely on my level. Maybe it was because I caught him off guard without a lot of choices, but he really shined tonight against you. After all, he took you out with one hit."  
  
"He didn't do as well as you think."  
  
"Huh? What are you talking about?"  
  
Gary turned to face Brock. "When I saw Misty, I wanted to help, but I knew he wouldn't stand a chance against me. It showed in the way he looked at me. He knew he didn't stand a chance. So, I took it easy on him. While we were walking toward the building, I whispered to Umbreon to fake a loss. Shawn thinks that he just got lucky. Now you know that his luck was orchestrated."  
  
* * *  
  
Shawn woke up to a chill in the middle of the night. Looking around, it was easy to see what the cause was. The windows in the wall went from the floor to the ceiling, and opened like doors. In one stood Misty, the breeze blowing her white nightgown against her. Shawn was taken aback at first; in the moonlight, she looked like a pale ghost.  
  
He got out of bed and quietly walked over to her, trying not to startle her. He hoped that maybe something had changed during the night, but when he saw her face, he knew that he was wrong. Her face was still blank as she looked out the window, and the letter was still under her nose.  
  
"Misty?" he asked gently.  
  
She turned to him with the airy smile still on her face. He wished she hadn't. Apparently, she hadn't been breathing any more than she physically had to. When she looked at him, her lips were blue, and her skin was pale. Shawn took an involuntary step back. For an instant, he was sure that he was still asleep, and that this apparition was a nightmare. Then she spoke, and that was worse.  
  
"Hey, Ash. I just thought of a way I could finally get to you." Her voice, light with the airy attitude that she had, echoed slightly from behind the paper, giving it an ethereal quality, as if it didn't exist at all.  
  
"Misty, come back to bed." He reached out to grab her, but when he touched her, her skin was cold and dry.  
  
"I have to get to you. You need me." She didn't even seem to register that he had done anything.  
  
"Please, Misty. You need to go back to sleep."  
  
"I will, as soon as I find you. It's so simple. Why didn't I think of it before?"  
  
"What is so simple, Misty? What is it that you have to do?"  
  
"Jump. Then I'll be with you again. We'll be together forever, and no one will ever get between us." Slowly, she leaned forward, letting gravity take over.  
  
"Misty, no!" He grabbed hold of her arm, but it wasn't enough. He reached back just in time to grab hold of the window, but she kept on going. Quickly, he rushed forward, moving his grip from her arm to her waist. "Help!" he yelled. "Help! Please, somebody help!"  
  
Brock was the first one up and in the room. "Oh, no," he cried as he saw what was going on.  
  
Gary came in on his heels. "What's going on?"  
  
"Misty's trying to jump," Brock shouted as he rushed forward to give Shawn a hand.  
  
She had become so relaxed that it took all three of them to get her back into the room. Once that had been done, and the window was shut, the next step was clear. They pried her fingers off of the letter, a surprisingly difficult task. It was as if every fiber of her being was latched on to that note.  
  
It took all three of them to open one hand. When they had, she tried to jerk back toward it. One of them had to stand in the way so she couldn't reach it while they got the other hand loose. When they did, it was if they had shattered something. The moment it was away from her, the calm broke, and she started crying uncontrollably.  
  
"First thing tomorrow," Shawn panted as he hurled the note across the room, "we're leaving for Pallet Town. When we get there, we're going to have Professor Oak tell us just what is in that thing."  
  
* * *  
  
In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:  
  
After the group was guided out of the forest by a strange Meganium, Misty has fallen into a strange trance. Finally managing to take the note away from her and pull her out of it, Shawn and Brock, now joined by Ash's rival, Gary, plan to go to Pallet Town in the morning to find out more about the note and the mysterious Meganium that delivered it. Also in Pallet Town waits the Dimension Ball, and their gateway to the Digimon Dimension. Will Domino, who tore open a portal to get to the Pokemon Dimension, get to them before they can jump? Will she ever catch that Caterpie? Will the author be able to wrap the next chapter up without splitting it into another one? Find out next time in Chapter 5: On the  
Interdimensional Road Again! 


	5. On the Interdimensional Road Again

Author's Note: I'm sure you all noticed that I stuck a few extra chapters in here. Well, let me explain that. You see, all of it was going to be one chapter, but then, while I was writing it, it just got to be too long, and, instead of making you guys read 40+ pages, I decided to break it up. Hopefully, I'll be able to get my act together and wrap it up in the next one. If I don't, you may see another one of those surprise chapters.  
  
Chapter 5  
  
On the Interdimensional Road Again  
  
"I felt so weird," Misty said as they sat in Professor Oak's front room. She looked a million times better, now that she was away from the letter, and she had gotten a good night's sleep. After the events of the previous night, they thought they should let her sleep as long as she needed to, and she didn't wake up until noon. Now, she was trying to explain to them what had happened. "The smell of the letter reminded me of Ash, and I suddenly felt like I wanted to see him more than anything else in the world. I should have felt sad, but I didn't. I just wanted to be with him. Before long, I had forgotten that I even had the note in my hands. It was like I had fallen asleep, but I was still awake. All of the time, the urge to see Ash got stronger. Eventually, I thought the only way to see him was to kill myself. That wasn't the thought that went through my mind, though. Everything felt so calm, as if I was detached from the entire world. The only thing that mattered was getting to Ash. I felt like he needed me. I thought that if I jumped, I might somehow fall into his world. Then, suddenly, it felt like a dam broke, and I felt so full of grief and sadness. It was so strong. I had never felt anything like it. That was probably when you took the note away from me."  
  
Shawn turned to her. "What do you mean, it was probably when we took the note away?"  
  
She turned to face him. Suddenly, something about the way he sat, or the look in his eyes, or the toss of his hair, something she couldn't put her finger on, made her think that she was looking at Ash. She pushed the thought away and reminded herself that it was only Shawn. Ash was in the other dimension. Her heart jumped as she thought about how happy she would be to see him, then she forced herself back down to Earth as she answered his question. "Honestly, I barely remember leaving Viridian Forest. I don't remember entering Viridian City at all. When I woke up this morning, I was in the upstairs room of the Pokemon Gym. That's all I know."  
  
Professor Oak entered the room, holding the letter, the string still attached, with rubber gloves. "I've analyzed the chemicals in the letter," he said as he shut the door behind him. Everyone in the room turned to look at him. "The aroma on the cord is definitely from the secretions of a Meganium, but it's different, somehow, as if it has been twisted in some way."  
  
"Twisted?" Shawn asked, bewildered. "What do you mean, Professor?"  
  
"Well, Shawn, typically, the aroma a Meganium produces incites feelings of peace and goodness. It is a defense mechanism that it has developed so it wouldn't have to fight, and, therefore, it wouldn't have to hurt anyone. The chemicals in the secretion of the Meganium that had this letter, however, causes the affected person to feel extremely calm. The effects, however, are only superficial. In reality, it doesn't change the emotions of a person, but blocks them, preventing the person from expressing them. Unfortunately, the human mind can't survive without expressing emotions, and eventually, they find their way out, in one form or another. Under prolonged exposure, the emotions build up, and, when the mind just can't hold any more, it breaks like a dam. As logical as Misty's reason for jumping sounded, it was actually her mind's last desperate effort to relieve itself of the extreme depression that it was unable to express in any other way."  
  
"But, Professor," Brock demanded, "Shawn and I had to guide her all the way into town. We were as close to that letter as she was. Why weren't we affected?"  
  
Professor Oak turned to face him. "I don't know, Brock. Something strange came up in my tests, though. As straightforward as my answer seems, there was something underneath the entire mess. Somehow, the effect is triggered by some link with emotions. I have no idea how."  
  
Misty looked up from Togepi, who she was rubbing while it cooed in her lap. "If the Meganium really did exist, though, why was Shawn the only one able to see it? Brock and I couldn't even smell it until Shawn handed me that note."  
  
"That's another thing I've been puzzled about. I did find something about that in my analysis of the secretion, though. A Meganium consumes a large amount of vegetable matter, so much so that chemical residue of it remains in its secretions. Using that residue, one could pinpoint the geological area of any Meganium. When you told me about how intelligent it seemed to be, and the way it seemed to recognize Shawn, I attempted to do exactly that. The residue, however, doesn't match any plant that I know of."  
  
"Gramps," Gary asked, "are you saying that it was a Meganium from another dimension?"  
  
"It would certainly seem to point to that, Gary, but I have my doubts. I'm not a herbologist, so I don't know the chemical composition of all of the plants on the planet, only the ones I've come across in my research. That's a large amount, believe me, but there's still room for error. Also, the description of the pokemon still pulls at me. It was almost as if it wasn't a real pokemon, but an apparition. Perhaps even an astral projection."  
  
"A what?" He had finally lost them all, and they all asked at the same time.  
  
He closed his eyes as he sighed. "I'm sorry, kids. I got excited, and I got ahead of myself. I seem to do that a lot. I'm sure you all have heard the stories of someone, when they are really in need of something, seeing someone else that they usually have a great emotional link with appear, sometimes out of nowhere. They fix their problem, usually leaving physical evidence as to their presence, then vanish without a trace. Now, usually, when people see others that aren't there, they call them ghosts, or sometimes, when they are alive, apparitions. In the field of science, however, we call such sightings astral projections, meaning they come from the astral plane. This is typically the "Other World" found in mythology. These sightings seem to occur in moments of urgency or strong emotion. Rather than being spiritual, however, I believe they may be travelling across dimensions in some manner. The mind is a powerful thing, and, during bouts of strong emotions, activity inside the brain surges. We don't understand everything the mind is capable of, and it is quite possible that it could "transmit" itself across space. Shawn, you said that it told you that your girlfriend was worried about you. It very well could be that she was indeed concerned for your well being. A woman's intuition is amazing, and never to be doubted. Her worry could very well have materialized as that Meganium that led you out of the forest, and delivered a message to you."  
  
Shawn was reminded of how his mother was able to talk to him while he was asleep, then give him clothes. If that portal had that kind of power, and had virtually no effect on the surrounding area, what kind of effect would a portal have that had the power to level half a forest?  
  
Before he could ask, however, Brock spoke up. "As fascinating as this is, Professor Oak, we need to get that Dimension Ball so we can go get Ash."  
  
"Ah, yes, about that. It is going to take a few hours to calibrate the Dimension Ball. Why don't you go pay Mrs. Kechum a visit in the meantime? I'm sure she'll be excited to find out that Ash is coming home."  
  
"Yeah, that's a great idea," Misty said as she stood up, holding Togepi in her arms. "We can pick up Ash's pokemon while we're there!"  
  
* * *  
  
Pikachu stared glumly out of the window from the back of the sofa. He missed Ash more and more everyday. Life just wasn't the same without him. Usually, when he missed Ash, he left the house, sometimes for days, training himself. Perhaps, he thought during these times, if I train hard enough, I'll be able to get to him. He constantly worked on being able to make bigger and bigger lightning bolts, sometimes draining himself so much that Mrs. Kechum would have to come get him, and he wouldn't be able to get up for a week. He knew it was impossible, but he just couldn't get the idea out of his mind that, somehow, if he could make it big enough, Ash might see it and come back for him.  
  
Today, however, it was worse than usual, and he didn't even see the point in moving. Not even when Mrs. Kechum called him for lunch.  
  
"Pikachu," she said, coming into the living room, "don't you want to eat?"  
  
"Pika," he said glumly as he shook his head from side to side.  
  
Mrs. Kechum sat down beside him. "You know, you're not the only one that misses Ash. I miss him, too. More than I could ever put into words. But you know what?," she asked as she picked the electric mouse up and held him in her arms, "I keep on going. Do you know why? Because there are still people who need me. Like Mimey, and you, Pikachu!"  
  
"Pika?" he asked, twitching his ear.  
  
"Really," she answered, as if she could understand him. "You have to keep on going, if for no one else, then for Ash. After all, that's why you're always practicing, isn't it? For Ash, I mean?"  
  
"Pi," he sighed as he nodded his head.  
  
Suddenly, Mimey, who was sweeping the living room floor, started jumping up and down, shouting, "Mime! Mime! Mr. Mime!"  
  
Pikachu and Mrs. Kechum looked over at the psychic pokemon. "What is it, Mimey," Mrs. Kechum asked, then looked down at Pikachu. "Do you know what he's saying, Pikachu? He's in such a fuss, I can't tell anything."  
  
Pikachu nodded, then jumped out of her arms and over to a picture of Misty, Brock, Ash and himself that was on the table. He pointed at Misty and Brock with his paws.  
  
Mrs. Kechum walked over to take a closer look. "Are Misty and Brock coming, Pikachu?"  
  
"Pika, Pika, Pikachu!" he responded in a quick, happy trill.  
  
Mimey leaned over the picture. "Mime, mime, mime. Mr. Mime."  
  
"What did he say, Pikachu?"  
  
This time, the pokemon pointed at Ash.  
  
"Is Ash coming, too," she asked excitedly.  
  
Pikachu and Mimey looked at each other, then turned back to her and imitated shrugs. They weren't sure.  
  
"Are they coming soon, Mimey?"  
  
"Mime," the Mr. Mime nodded, and Pikachu ran back to the window.  
  
She didn't understand what Mimey said, but, from Pikachu's reaction, she guessed it meant something like, right away. "That soon, huh," she said, and she and Mimey joined Pikachu at the window.  
  
They watched as Brock, Misty, and Gary all topped the hill on the road to their house. Their hearts caught in their chests as a head of dark hair popped up behind them. Could it be? Was it really him? Their hearts seemed to land in their stomachs as Shawn's face popped over the hill.  
  
Mrs. Kechum and Pikachu both turned around and slid down into the sofa.  
  
"It wasn't him," Mrs. Kechum said. She turned to Pikachu. "You know, call me crazy, but I was so sure that it was Ash. I was even ready to shout out his name."  
  
Pikachu looked back at her. "Pika," he nodded. He had gotten the same feeling.  
  
A few minutes later, she heard them knock on the front door. She went to let them in, forcing herself to smile to hide her disappointment. "Hello, everybody," she greeted them as she opened the door. "Why don't you come on in?  
  
She watched for the strange boy as they came in. She almost missed him. He was slouching in the back, as if he felt like he didn't deserve to be there. She scowled as she went up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder. "There will be no slouching in my house, mister," she scolded him as he turned around. "Now, don't you think that you should introduce yourself?"  
  
He turned around, putting one hand behind his head and the other hand out in front to shake. "Sorry about that," he said, smiling broadly, "My name's Shawn. Shawn Rae."  
  
"Well it's a pleasure to meet you, Shawn," Mrs. Kechum answered, taking his hand. Then she scowled at him again. "Although your parents did a bad job of teaching you manners, coming into another person's house without introducing yourself, and slouching, no less!"  
  
Shawn backed up and turned away as if he had been hit.  
  
Misty saw, then came up beside him. "Mrs. Kechum, Shawn doesn't have any parents. His mother died a year ago."  
  
Mrs. Kechum's face softened as she reached out in his direction. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Shawn. I had no idea."  
  
"It's okay," he said, turning back toward her and forcing a smile. "You didn't know."  
  
Mrs. Kechum stared at him for a moment, wanting to say something more, but unsure of what to say. She decided to change the subject. "So, what brings you all here," she asked, noting that she did the right thing as Shawn's face brightened up slightly.  
  
"Well, we just thought that we should let you know that we are going to be leaving Kanto for a while," Brock answered, careful not to say just how far behind they were leaving it. "But when we get back, if all goes well, Ash should be coming with us."  
  
Mrs. Kechum's face lit up as she clasped her hands in front of her. "You mean it? You're bringing Ash home?"  
  
Pikachu looked up from the sofa where he had been moping. He was about to yell for joy, then he saw Shawn. There was something odd about him. Pikachu jumped off of the sofa and ran over beside him and started dashing around him, looking him over.  
  
"Yep," Misty smiled, "that's right."  
  
Shawn looked down at the electric pokemon, watching it dart around. When Pikachu saw him look at him, though, he dashed behind Mrs. Kechum.  
  
"My," she said, looking behind her. "What's gotten into Pikachu?"  
  
Shawn got down on his hands and knees and crawled over to the pokemon. "What's up, Pikachu?"  
  
What's going on, Pikachu thought. What is it with this guy? Why does he remind me of Ash? Just then, Shawn reached out to touch him. As a reaction, when Shawn got within an inch of him, Pikachu let out a jolt of electricity, enough to run a small kitchen.  
  
Immediately, Shawn was aglow in the yellow light as he shook and twitched.  
  
"Pikachu!" Mrs. Kechum turned her scowl on the mouse. "You stop that this instant! He's our guest!"  
  
The light disappeared and Shawn fell to the ground. Pikachu turned to Mrs. Kechum. "Pika," he said in apology as he bowed his head.  
  
"It seems," Shawn gasped, "that he . has a very shocking personality."  
  
Mrs. Kechum smiled. "Yes, I believe that was Ash's first impression of him, too." She remembered what they had said earlier, about bringing her son back. "So, not to seem rude, but when are you planning to leave?"  
  
"In a few hours," Gary answered. "Gramps has to get something ready for us."  
  
"The Dimension Ball, right?"  
  
The four of them looked at her, shocked that she knew.  
  
"How did you know about that," Brock was the first one to ask.  
  
"Professor Oak told me about it after you left last time. I was glad that Ash finally found out where he was from, but it still hurt that he left. Now, it's like there's a hole in my heart where he was. It hasn't been the same since he left."  
  
"He sent us over here to tell you," Shawn said. "He thought you would be happy to know about it."  
  
"Oh, I am! You wouldn't believe how excited I am! I'm going to have to clean his room, though. It's gotten a little dusty." She put her hands on her hips as another thought occurred to her. "It's getting late, and you kids said that it would be a few hours before you were ready to go. Would you like to stay for dinner?"  
  
Acceptance of her invitation was unanimous.  
  
She fixed a magnificent meal that night, one that none of them were soon to forget. As she was washing the dishes afterwards, however, she got a call. The I.D. said that it was from Professor Oak.  
  
"Shawn, Misty, Brock, Gary! It's Professor Oak!"  
  
They came into the kitchen and answered the phone. Professor Oak appeared on the screen. He was coughing, and black smoke was coming up behind him.  
  
"Professor," Brock said as soon as the screen came on, "is everything okay?"  
  
"Yes, thank you, Brock," he answered between coughs. "But it seems that you may have to wait a while longer to leave. I ran into some problems while I was calibrating the Dimension Ball."  
  
"Oh, no," Misty moaned. "You tried to tinker with the Dimension Ball, didn't you, Professor?"  
  
"Well, uh," Oak stuttered, "I just had some ideas on how to improve it, and I thought I would go ahead and try to add them."  
  
"Gramps," Gary complained, "you broke it, didn't you? That's what all that smoke is from, and now you need time to fix it."  
  
"I knew I should have just stuck to audio transmission only," Professor Oak mumbled.  
  
Shawn held his head and sighed. "Can you just tell us when it will be ready, Professor?"  
  
"Well, I can have all of the bugs worked out and have it running again by tomorrow."  
  
"Wow," Misty said, "that soon?"  
  
"Well, I am a genius."  
  
They all collapsed to the floor.  
  
"Are you guys still there? Hello?"  
  
"Yeah," Brock said as they pulled themselves up, "we're still here. I guess we'll see you tomorrow, then."  
  
"What did he want," Mrs. Kechum asked as soon as they finished. "Does he have the ball ready?"  
  
"Actually, he called to tell us that it wouldn't be ready until morning," Brock answered. "He tried to upgrade it, and he blew it up."  
  
"Oh," she responded as her heart fell. Then she reminded herself that it was only one more day. "It's getting awfully late, don't you think? Why don't you all just spend the night here? I won't take no for an answer."  
  
She got them all tucked in and asleep, then went around one more time before going to bed herself. She stopped at Shawn, and looked down on him. The way he laid there, with his hair all spread out, and his arms and legs going everywhere, made him look surprisingly like Ash. She reached down with a small smile on her face as she straightened up his hair. He did look a lot like him. Shawn was taller and more muscular than Ash, but the resemblance was there. They had the same hair and eyes, even the same face. Although Ash's eyes were brown. Come to think of it, though, they were naturally blue. A thought occurred to her as she thought about a birthmark that Ash had under his ear. Gently, she turned his head sideways to look under Shawn's ear, fully expecting to see it there. She lifted up the earlobe, careful not to wake him. Her heart crashed, however, when she saw only pale, white skin looking back at her.  
  
She felt the sadness come up in her. Oh, how she missed her son. No matter what happened, no matter who he turned out to be in his other life, he would still be her son, and she would miss him horribly until he came back. She got up as she started to cry. One drop rolled down her cheek before she could get away, however, and fell into his hair, leaving a small, dark, wet spot.  
  
* * *  
  
The four of them left the next morning when Professor Oak called to tell them that the Dimension Ball was ready. They told Mrs. Kechum farewell one last time, and soon they were standing back in Professor Oak's laboratory, Pikachu sitting on Misty's shoulder while Brock had Ash's pokeballs in his  
backpack.  
  
"So," Oak asked them in greeting, "are you kids ready to go?" Eager nods answered him. They were more than ready. "Okay," he said, handing the Dimension Ball to Shawn, "Just stand in front of the computer and press the button. Don't forget to keep physical contact between each other."  
  
Professor Oak moved back to the other side of the room, while they all put a hand on Shawn's shoulder. "Everybody ready," he asked as he looked around and made sure everyone was touching him. "Okay, next stop, the Digimon Dimension! Please make sure all pokeballs are secure and all loose pokemon and belongings are strapped in place. Please keep your arms and legs inside the dimensional bubble at all times." He looked toward the monitor, his face daring anything to stop them now. Mother, he thought, I'll avenge you yet. "Okay, here we go!" He pressed the button on the ball, and there was a flash of light, and they were gone.  
  
"I wish you all the best of luck," Oak said to the empty room. Suddenly, one of the computers that he used to monitor the Dimension Ball started beeping erratically. He rushed over to it and pushed several buttons. The screen filled up with figures and graphs, representing the path that the ball was supposed to take. It went straight, then suddenly veered off at an oblique angle, going off in another direction. "Oh, no," he whispered as he translated the images in his head. "This can't be happening!" He looked over at the monitor that they had disappeared through. "What have I sent those children into?"  
  
* * *  
  
In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:  
  
Shawn and company have finally gotten their hands on the Dimension Ball, and have gone to find Ash. But a moment too late, Professor Oak's systems have detected something amiss in the Dimension Ball's tracking system. Where is it taking them? Where will they end up? Find out all this and more in Chapter 6: Old Friends Reunite! 


	6. Old Friends Reunite

(Curtain opens on Ninmast sitting in front of his desktop.)  
  
Ninmast: Welcome back to The Pokemon Master's Return! Now, most of you are probably wondering why I'm not sticking to my usual Author's Note. I just thought that, since this chapter represents a major turning point in the story, I'd make a personal appearance. Now, to rehash the story thus far, Shawn, Misty, Brock, Gary, and Pikachu have used Professor Oak's Dimension Ball to leave the Pokemon Dimension once again. Soon after they left, however, Oak's computers recorded that something had gone wrong with the guidance system. Meanwhile, Domino has torn a hole in the multiverse into the Pokemon Dimension in an attempt to follow Shawn, against Team Rocket orders. What will happen to Shawn and company? Will Domino be able to catch up with them? If so, what will happen then? Today, we .  
  
(Before Ninmast can finish, Jesse, James, and Meowth storm in.)  
  
Jesse: Hold your Horseas right there! What about us?  
  
James: Yeah! Why aren't we in there?  
  
Ninmast: Huh? What are you talking about?  
  
Meowth: C'mon, you've written five chapters in this junk of a story, and four of 'em have been in our world, and you mean to tell us that you didn't even think of putting us in there?  
  
Ninmast: (Rubs the back of his head and grins stupidly) Actually, no, it never crossed my mind.  
  
Jesse: (Picks Ninmast up by the collar) Why you little brat!  
  
Ninmast: (Gasps) Please, you're choking me!  
  
James: (Picks up the monitor, examining the equipment) Hey, Jesse, how much do you think we could get for this stuff?  
  
Jesse: (Drops Ninmast and walks over to James. Looks stuff over, then throws her head back and laughs) Don't be ridiculous, James! It wouldn't be worth the effort of taking it out of here. Just look at his printer! He's still using a Dot Matrix! (Turns to Ninmast) How much memory do you have in that piece of junk? 10 GB?  
  
Ninmast: Actually, I only have 3.  
  
Jesse, James, and Meowth: (Stare at him wide-eyed for a moment, then laugh hysterically.)  
  
Jesse: I'm surprised you can do anything on that piece of junk!  
  
James: (Pulls out a cell phone) I have more memory than that on my phone!  
  
Jesse: (Grabs phone and throws it out the window while James screams in complaint) That's because you spent all of our last month's savings on the thing, and you don't even have anyone to call!  
  
Meowth: (Looks down and rubs stomach) Yeah, we was hungry for the entire month.  
  
Ninmast: (Jumps back into his chair and starts typing) That's it, I'm getting sick of this!  
  
Jesse, James, and Meowth: (Get behind him and stare at the screen) Hey, what are you typing?  
  
Ninmast: (Backs away and smiles widely at them as he shows them the screen)  
  
TEAM ROCKET DISAPPEARS  
  
James: (Pales) Tell me, Meowth, why don't I like the sound of that?  
  
Meowth: (Shrugs and shakes his head) Don't know, couldn't tell ya. I can't read, remember?  
  
Jesse: (Also pales) Lucky you, Meowth! I wonder what it feels like to disappear.  
  
Jesse and James: (Cling to each other) Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off a .  
  
Silence fills the room as Ninmast presses the Enter key.  
  
Ninmast: Anyway, as I was saying, we'll find out all about what happens to Shawn and company in Chapter 6: Old Friends Reunite!  
  
James: (Pops back in) Say, could I get my phone back, please?  
  
Ninmast: (Sighs and sweatdrops) I guess so. Hold on. (Gets James's phone and hands it to him)  
  
James: Thanks! (Disappears again)  
  
Ninmast: (Throws his hands up) Enjoy the story! I'm sure not! Don't forget to post a review when you're done, and tell me what you think of this kind of introduction, as opposed to my Author's Note. I'm going to go get some aspirin. I'll read it when I get back.  
  
(Ninmast walks off stage holding his head as curtain closes)  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 6  
  
Old Friends Reunite  
  
A flash of light appears and fades as Shawn, Misty, Brock, Gary, and Pikachu find themselves standing in the middle of a huge forest, but one with trees that none of them have ever seen before.  
  
"Cybernetic trees?" Misty asked as she fingered a thick cable running up a tree like a vine. "Where are we?"  
  
"I don't know," Brock answered as he looked around, "But it sure isn't the Digimon Dimension. At least that looked like ours."  
  
Shawn stared at an upside down speed limit sign that was posted high on one tree. "I think I know where we are. I've got the feeling we're a lot closer than you think."  
  
The pokemon heard it first. Togepi suddenly screamed as it tried to burrow down further into Misty's knapsack. The Persian turned and reared back, growling. Pikachu jumped off Misty's shoulder, where he had been playing with Togepi, and ran out in front of them all, sparking with electricity.  
  
"What's with them?" Gary asked, staring at them, perplexed.  
  
Then they heard it. A loud humming noise filled the air as if a giant fan had been turned on. They stared in horror as it quickly grew to a roar.  
  
Shawn saw a flash of dark green against the lighter foliage. "Hit the dirt!" he yelled out of instinct.  
  
A split second after they had all hit the ground, a giant insect with twin scythes at the end of each arm buzzed over them, cutting all of the trees waist high like butter. They all rolled as well as they could to avoid being hit by the trees.  
  
Shawn coughed as the dust settled. His Rocket military training went into automatic. "Role Call! Everyone okay?"  
  
The Persian and Pikachu, who had been on alert ahead of time, came up to them unscathed.  
  
"I'm scratched, and a little bruised," Brock answered as he rolled a small tree off of his arm, "but I'll be okay."  
  
"I'm fine," Gary said, indignity in his voice. Obviously, the worst thing hurt was his pride.  
  
"Misty?" Shawn called.  
  
"I'm over here," he heard her cough. "I'm pretty sure Togepi's fine, but my foot's stuck, and I can't move it."  
  
As the dust settled further, they saw her, as well as the reason why she couldn't move. The large tree that she had been fingering had fallen on top of her ankle.  
  
They ran over to try to help her, but before they could start, a look of horror appeared on her face. "Look!" she yelled, pointing in the direction the insect had flown. They turned to see the thing circling around.  
  
"It's coming back," Brock yelled.  
  
Shawn's hand was already moving. Even so, he barely got it out in time. "Scyther, go," he yelled as he threw the pokeball up, and the two insects clashed in a flash of blue light, their sharp claws throwing sparks as they locked.  
  
Scyther was strong, but its opponent was twice its size. It cried as it strained to hold the wild monster back.  
  
"Come on, Scyther, focus," Shawn called to the pokemon. "Misty can't move. We can't let this thing get another run at us, or we're all done for!"  
  
Scyther caught the urgency in his voice, and its wings caused a gust of air and dust as it forced its way back up, the whole time, the monster cried angrily at it, trying to force it back.  
  
"Scyther, it's strong, but it seems too wild to be very smart. Fake it out with your False Swipe, then hit it hard with your Fury Cutter!"  
  
Scyther broke away, and the monster backed away just in time as Scyther's claw came down right in front of its face. While it was distracted with dodging that, Scyther quickly brought it back, and brought both scythes together in a sweep that cut across its stomach, leaving deep gashes. The monster screeched in pain, and turned to flee.  
  
"Good job, Scyther," Shawn yelled happily to the pokemon as he pulled the pokeball up. "Let it go. I get the feeling it won't be bothering us anymore!"  
  
Instead of obeying, however, Scyther looked back daringly at Shawn, then dark flames wrapped around it as it burst forward at an amazing speed with its claws out in front of it. The Pursuit tore through the retreating monster like tissue paper, and it fell to the ground. Scyther landed between it and Shawn, looking very proud of itself as it licked its scythe off.  
  
"Wow," Brock exclaimed, staring in awe at the Scyther. "That's what I call unruly! It's as bad as Ash's Charizard!"  
  
"Yeah, I know," Shawn said as he stared at the mess the pokemon had made. "He's so aggressive that once he gets started in a fight, he won't stop until it's finished. If something challenges him, he's not content just to defeat it. He has to destroy it, utterly and completely. He loves me dearly, and would protect me with his life, but he's just so destructive ."  
  
"Look," Gary said as he pointed at the monster. "It's . disintegrating?"  
  
They all turned to look, and, sure enough, it looked like it was breaking apart into small blocks that were blowing away into the wind.  
  
"Uh, hello?" Misty called after the thing had completely disappeared. "Helpless, beautiful maiden trapped under big, ugly tree, over here!"  
  
"Scyther, would you cut Misty out from under there, please," Shawn asked, forgetting that Misty hated bugs, and the bigger they were, the worse they were, and Scyther was very big, and had two very big and very sharp blades attached to its arms.  
  
Misty blanched as the pokemon came over to her, looking at her from the other side of the tree. It tilted its head sideways to stare at her mischievously. She pushed herself down against the ground as Scyther peered over at her, mere inches from her face. Then it stood up, and took one claw and gently pulled it over her leg, not hard enough to hurt, only enough to induce panic.  
  
"Shawn," she screeched, "make it stop!"  
  
Shawn grinned as he walked over to her. "You know, Misty, he's just doing what comes natural to him. When someone shows him fear, it triggers an instinct to terrify them as much as possible. It's not something I'm very proud of discovering, but you can bet it was something that Giovanni found very interesting. Don't worry, though. He knows that you are a friend, and he won't hurt you."  
  
"You sure could have fooled me!"  
  
Suddenly, something very unexpected happened. Togepi, who had apparently rolled out of Misty's knapsack when the tree fell, jumped up on her chest, looking angry. It did its best to growl ferociously, but the result was only a small, high coo. Scyther pulled its head back, tilting it as it comically considered this little challenger. It merely reached out and tapped it with its claw, causing the little would-be hero to roll off to the ground.  
  
"Scyther," Shawn scolded, "I know you are just teasing Misty, but don't you think you should draw the line at picking on baby pokemon?"  
  
Scyther looked up at Shawn apologetically just as Togepi reared back and sent itself flying at Scyther, headbutting him square in the chin.  
  
The seemingly impressive blow merely caught Scyther off guard, and didn't even hurt him. It did, however, throw him into a rage. Shawn, Brock, and Gary all grabbed hold of him from behind as he swung his claws around furiously, trying to get to the little egg pokemon, who was now cowering back up against Misty.  
  
Suddenly, in a burst of power, Scyther threw all three of them off of his back and rushed for Togepi, swinging his razor sharp scythe down in a deadly arc.  
  
"Scyther, no!" Shawn screamed. The Scyther stopped, the blade barely a hair's breadth away from Togepi's face. "Scyther, please! Think this through! I know you're intelligent enough. If you do this, if you kill this defenseless little Togepi, you will be no better than that monster that you just fought to destroy. Do you really want that?" Shawn slowly walked up to the green pokemon. "Besides, you would have done the same thing in his position. In fact, you just did. Misty is like his mother, and you were torturing her. He knew you were bigger, stronger, and meaner than he would ever be, but that didn't matter. All that mattered was Misty." Shawn put his hand on what constituted for Scyther's shoulder as he repeated, "You would have done the same."  
  
He felt Scyther relax as he lifted the blade and dropped it to his side. The pokemon turned as if to walk away, then spun around in a flash of speed and started swinging his blades as Misty and Togepi shrieked. When he was done, however, he stepped back as the entire part of the tree that was on top of Misty fell away in ribbons, while they were unharmed.  
  
"Good job," Shawn said gently as he patted Scyther on the shoulder again and pulled out the pokeball. "Rest awhile and cool off, though, okay?"  
  
The Scyther nodded as it disappeared in another flash of blue light.  
  
"Shawn, why in the world do you keep such a nasty, little, Ow!" Misty had been trying to get up as she was scolding Shawn, but when she tried to put weight on the ankle, she almost collapsed again as pain shot up her leg, and she was barely able to catch herself on the tree next to her that was still standing.  
  
"Sit down, Misty," Brock ordered as he rushed over to her, "and let me see what's wrong with it." She did as he told her, and he lifted it gingerly to examine it. It was already starting to turn an angry purple. "Brace yourself, Misty, this might hurt a little," he warned her as he probed with his fingers for broken bones.  
  
Misty, of course, blew up with the pain. "Ouch! Ow, ow, ow, ow, OUCH! You said it'd only hurt a little!"  
  
"Sorry, Misty," Brock apologized as he finished. He took his backpack off and fished around in it, finally coming back out with a roll of bandage wrap. "Luckily, nothing seems to be broken. It looks like it's just banged up really bad. You're probably going to have a little trouble walking for awhile, though." He turned to face Gary and Shawn as he finished wrapping her ankle. "We should probably rest here for a while. She probably won't be able to stand on her own for a bit, and will still have to lean against one of us for support to walk after that."  
  
"I'm all for that," Gary said as he sat down on one of the stumps. "That was the most action I've seen in a while. What was that thing, anyway? It looked like a giant Scyther, but it had the ugliest mug I've ever seen. Could it have been some kind of a mutation?"  
  
"Nah," Shawn said as he stared at the place where the monster had landed. The ground still held the imprint it had made on impact. He never would have thought that the thing would be that heavy. "If that was a Scyther, I'll eat my shirt."  
  
Misty turned to him as much as she could without moving her ankle. "If it wasn't a Scyther, Shawn, do you know what it was?"  
  
"Yeah," he answered, his face clouded in a combination of dread and determination. "It's called Snimon. A Digimon." He looked up at the now open sky, fully expecting what was there. The other's followed his gaze and gasped at what they saw. Where there should have been a sky of the same clarity as what surrounded it, straight above them, the blue sky faded out to green lines that connected above them to form a dome. "Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the Digital World. And you thought the outside of your computer was intimidating."  
  
* * *  
  
An infinite distance away, across time and space, in the dimension that they thought they had been aiming for, sat an older, skinny boy with hair  
that looked like it hadn't seen a comb in years. He sat in front of a computer, making a routine sweep of the Digital World. Something flashed on his screen for an instant, distorting an entire area before disappearing  
again. "Hey, Tai," he called across the room, "I think you should come  
look at this."  
  
A boy about the same age came and peered at the monitor over his shoulder. Tai's hair was equally unkempt, but it was brown and bushy, as opposed to the short, red hair of the other boy's. "What is it, Izzy? Something up?"  
  
Izzy started typing furiously on the keyboard as he answered. "Readings indicated an odd anomaly in the Digital World."  
  
Tai smiled as he put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Whoa, slow down there, chief! You wanna say that again in my native tongue?"  
  
"Impressive, Tai," Matt said as he entered the room, with his younger brother, T.K., behind him. He brushed his bright blonde hair out of his blue eyes. "I had no idea you knew what that meant!"  
  
"What, native tongue?"  
  
"No, slow."  
  
"Ouch," Tai said as they all laughed.  
  
"That was mean, Matt," Kari said, though she was still smiling as she walked over to T.K. and pulled Patamon out of his backpack.  
  
"Yeah, but your big brother knows I'm just joking."  
  
"Whew, thanks, Kari," the orange and white digimon said when she sat him down. "You wouldn't believe how stuffy it gets in that bag. And he forgot to take out his gym socks! Yuck!"  
  
"What are you guys doing here, anyway," Tai asked after they had laughed that one over. "I thought you were going to take T.K. to get your new album." Leaning over to T.K., he whispered in his ear, "I'm jealous! When Pop stars have little brothers, they get all of the cool merchandise."  
  
When the laughter stopped again, Matt answered seriously, "I got an e-mail from Gabumon just a moment ago that said that something strange happened in the Digital World. He wasn't sure what it was, so I came here, hoping that you guys would know a little more." 'Here' was the school computer lab, where Izzy worked as technician. Over time, however, thanks to Izzy's ingenious computer programs, it had become more like Digi-Destined HQ.  
  
"Yeah," Tai answered, "we saw something, or, rather, Izzy did. You know how he talks, though, I couldn't understand a word of it."  
  
"Sorry, Tai," Izzy said, already absorbed in his typing. "I keep on forgetting your linguistic inferiority."  
  
"No problem," Tai responded with a shrug. "Easy mistake to make."  
  
"You have no idea what I just said, do you?"  
  
"Not a clue."  
  
"Didn't think so." He pulled back from the monitor so they all could see. "Okay, here it is. It's no wonder Gabumon felt it. It was right in the middle of his area."  
  
They all watched the screen as the scene replayed, the area in question seeming to warp, then, as suddenly as it began, it snapped back to normal.  
  
"What was that," T.K. asked as he stared at the screen.  
  
"Judging from the analysis of the readings, it seems to be some kind of portal. If it let anything through, though, it wasn't much. It was open for only a brief instant." Izzy leaned back in his chair. "It was actually very similar to the portal that is opened when we use our digivices, only much less sophisticated."  
  
"Well, whatever it was, we had better go check it out," T.K. said as he reached for his digivice and Patamon flew up beside his head.  
  
"Wait for us, T.K.," Kari said as she picked up Gatomon in her arms and rushed over beside him.  
  
"Remember," Tai warned them, "you are only going in to check things out. If you get into trouble, call. We'll be watching."  
  
"I'll get hold of the others," Izzy said as he keyed in a few commands to bring up the proper program. "They'll be here when you need them."  
  
"Right," T.K. said as he held the little machine out in front of him. The monitor and the digivice began to glow brightly. "Digital World, here we come." In a flash of light, they were gone.  
  
* * *  
  
Jesse, James, and Meowth stood behind a food cart, selling grilled fish.  
  
"This job stinks, literally!" Jesse reared back and kicked the remains of a fish that she had just dropped on the ground for the tenth time. "Remind me to make a note, James: Never insult an author when you're making a cameo in his story."  
  
"Yeah, or you'll end up standing over a hot grill, serving smelly, burnt fish to anyone whose kind enough to come over, and merciful enough to eat the stuff." James stuck the grilling fork in the fish he was cooking and held it at eye level as he stared at it for a moment before slapping it back down with a sigh.  
  
"Ah, you guys should stop complaining," Meowth said as he snatched James's fish off of the grill and sucked the meat off as he pulled the bones back out in one piece. "It's not that bad!"  
  
"Meowth," James shouted, "That was for the customers!"  
  
Meowth shrugged and turned away. "Look around, you knucklehead! There are no customers."  
  
Jesse came around to stand in front of him as she scowled down. "And there won't be if you keep eating all of our fish!"  
  
Suddenly, James looked in the other direction. "Hey, shut up, you guys! Someone's coming!"  
  
"Hello, miss," Jesse called to the blonde girl as she walked around the corner, head cast down as she trudged along, as if every last bit of her energy had been taxed. "Care to try a plate of our grilled fish? A nice, hot meal might just brighten you up!"  
  
The girl stopped as if to think for a moment, then walked in their direction. "Yeah, sure, I need something to eat, even if it is your smelly fish," the girl answered as she plopped on a stool, her hat pulled down over her eyes. "I'm famished."  
  
In a flash, they were grilling, seasoning and chopping. Jesse and James were, anyway. Meowth merely stared at the girl, sure that he had seen her somewhere before.  
  
In a few moments, they had her plate ready. "Here you go," Jesse and James said as they handed the plate to her. "We hope you enjoy!"  
  
The girl slowly picked up the fork as Jesse and James stood back, staring intently, waiting to see what she thought. When she got the bite in her mouth, however, they found out it wasn't good.  
  
"What's wrong with you people," she shouted as she spit the bite out and threw the rest of the plate back on them. "It's still raw!"  
  
Jesse and James cringed back. "Actually," James answered, "we prefer the term, 'rare.'"  
  
"Rare? What are you guys, a bunch of idiots?"  
  
"Man," Jesse whispered to James, "we haven't been yelled at this much since Domino made us mop the floors when she found us locked in that cell."  
  
Meowth, however, was still staring. Suddenly, it hit him. "Now, I know who you are," he declared victoriously. "I'd recognize that ugly, red angry vein in your neck anywhere! You're Domino!"  
  
"WHAT!?" Jesse shouted in shock.  
  
"She's Domino?" James asked doubtfully. "Man, I heard that Team Rocket had broken up, but times have really been hard on her."  
  
"I recognize you fools, now, too," Domino answered, her face red with rage. "You're those idiots that made fools out of yourselves in the name of Team Rocket at that mountain retreat, then got yourselves locked in a cell inside our own base!"  
  
"Hey," James protested, "in our own defense, the twerps locked us in there."  
  
"That's even worse," she said, standing now, her hands on her hips. "I mean, I know you're just grunts, but still, you should be able to handle a couple of kids!"  
  
"That's neither here nor there, is it," Meowth said as he jumped between them. "I mean, that's all behind all of us, right?" He turned to Domino, trying to give his best cute cat pose. "So, what have you been doing since Team Rocket fell apart?"  
  
Domino knocked him back over the counter as she snuffed indignantly. "Don't be ridiculous. Team Rocket didn't disband. We just moved. We only told those that we wanted to get rid of that things were falling apart."  
  
"But we got a letter of dismissal, saying that the organization could no longer support us," James responded, holding up an official looking letter.  
  
"Exactly, you idiot! That's what all of the useless grunts got. You know the type. The kind that are too stupid to get the hint. The kind that just keep on embarrassing us. The kind that you see in the mirror."  
  
"Who's that," Meowth asked, oblivious. "I'm too short to look in the mirror."  
  
Jesse kicked him in the butt. "She's talking about us, you stupid furball."  
  
"Oh," he said as he rubbed his posterior, "I knew that."  
  
James stared at Domino for a few moments, perplexed. "So, if Team Rocket is still together, what happened to you? I thought you were the best Executive in the organization."  
  
"I still am, you brainless chimp! If you must know, I'm here on a mission to rescue a fellow Executive." Domino went starry-eyed as she went on about Shawn. "He heroically risked his life to save Giovanni's beloved Persian, but now," she continued, closing her eyes and looking downcast, "no one knows where he is. He could be anywhere, lost, alone, cold, and hungry." She looked up again, a determined gleam in her eye. "I have to find him. He needs me!"  
  
"Boy, she's got it bad," Jesse whispered to James.  
  
"Yeah, isn't that the truth!"  
  
"Let's stop gabbing and get out of here," Meowth whispered in response, "before she decides to recruit us!"  
  
In a flash, they started pulling the cart and dashed off.  
  
"Hey!" Domino shouted as she turned in their direction. "Where do you think you're going?"  
  
"Sorry, work day's over!"  
  
"Yeah, it's getting late, and we really need to be getting home, so I guess we'll be seeing you around!"  
  
"Good luck with your search!"  
  
"I don't think so!" She ran up in front of them. "I'm officially reassigning you to the search!"  
  
"Sorry, Domino, but you're forgetting, you can't do that," James said as he held up the dismissal note again, for the first time glad that they had it. "You see, we don't work for Team Rocket anymore. We were fired, see?"  
  
"Not any more, you're not," she yelled as she grabbed the letter and shredded it. "I'm reinstating you! Now move it!"  
  
Off they ran toward Viridian City, Jesse, James, and Meowth running with every ounce of strength their fear gave them, and Domino shouting various threats and curses behind them.  
  
* * *  
  
"I still wish you had brought Matt with you," Gabumon said as he led them to the middle of the disturbance. "It's been so long since he came to visit me."  
  
"Don't feel bad, Gabumon," T.K. reassured him. "From what I hear, he's been so busy with his tours, he hasn't even shown up at his own house in a while."  
  
"You're his partner, Gabumon," Kari continued, "and, more than that, you're his friend. No matter how long he's away, he'll always miss you."  
  
"Yeah," T.K. responded to himself, suddenly seeming distant.  
  
"What's wrong, T.K.?"  
  
"Oh, I just had a dream about Pikachu last night. You remember, the pokemon that I had in the other dimension?"  
  
"Yeah, when you were Albert? Or was it Aaron?"  
  
"Neither," T.K. smiled, "My name was Ash."  
  
"Oh, sorry. I'm as bad as Davis!"  
  
"That's okay, Kari. It's been awhile. We've gone through a lot since then." He resumed his staring gaze, the one he used when he was thinking and talking at the same time. "Even so, I still miss Pikachu. We were so close. It was like he was my partner. We started out hating each other, but at the end, we couldn't live without each other." He hung his head in sorrow as he remembered. "The only way I could leave him was to never look back. If I did, I never would have had the courage to do it." Kari watched as a tear swelled up and rolled down his cheek.  
  
"T.K.," she said tenderly as she reached for his cheek.  
  
He brushed her hand away, then wiped the tear off, almost angrily, and dried his hand on his shirt. "I'm fine. It's just that sometimes, I wish I could have had both worlds."  
  
Patamon scowled from the top of T.K.'s hat. "What are you guys crying over? It was a yellow, electric rat! It couldn't even talk!"  
  
"Patamon! I'm ashamed of you," Gatomon scolded the winged digimon from where she was walking beside Kari. "Pikachu was T.K.'s friend, just as much as you are! He may not have been able to talk, but he was still smart, and he still would have given his life to help him, just like you would."  
  
Kari smiled down at the cat digimon. "You know, Gatomon, sometimes I think that you have a crush on Pikachu."  
  
Gatomon blushed, an impossible thing for a normal cat. "Don't be ridiculous! He's a giant mouse! If he wasn't a friend, I'd have him for a buffet!"  
  
Patamon fluttered down, flying backwards in front of Gatomon. "Oh yeah? Then why is your face as red as Hawkmon's feathers?"  
  
Gatomon's eyes closed to dangerous slits. "You're a small, bouncy little thing that is fluttering around in front of me. I suggest you stop before I get the urge to pounce."  
  
Patamon looked shaken by the small champion level digimon's threat, but was too intimidated to say anything.  
  
"It's not just Pikachu that I miss, though," T.K. continued as if they were still on the subject. "I miss all of them. They were my friends and family when I had none."  
  
"You still have your friends and family, T.K.," Kari said gently as she slipped her hand into his. "Nothing can ever take that away."  
  
He smiled at her thankfully as he squeezed her hand.  
  
They rounded one last bend through the forest, then came into an area where all of the trees had been cut down about waist high. In the middle of the "glade" stood four trainers, pokeballs at the ready. T.K.'s eyes closed to slits, much like Gatomon's had done moments before. He reached for his belt, where his own pokeballs used to hang, before remembering that they weren't there.  
  
One of the trainers, the one with spiky, brown hair, noticed and broke into a huge grin. "Some habits never die, do they, Ashy boy?"  
  
* * *  
  
Shawn and the others were sitting in the glade, doing various things. Misty tried to stand up, but lost her balance. She tried to catch herself, as a reaction, by bracing with her bad foot. "Ah," she gasped, trying to keep quiet, in case there were more digimon around.  
  
Gary turned to her. "What's wrong?"  
  
Misty scowled back. "You mean, besides the fact that I just landed on my bad ankle?"  
  
He smiled gently. "I meant, why did you try to stand up? One of us could have helped you."  
  
"Oh, I just wanted to get up for a while," she sighed. "I haven't been able to feel my butt for half an hour, now, and I'd like to make sure that it's still there, that's all."  
  
Gary smiled again as he walked over to her and draped her arm around his shoulder. "Here," he answered her questioning stare, "you can lean against me."  
  
Meanwhile, Shawn was sitting on one of the tree trunks, staring up at the sky. The sun was dropping behind the trees. He looked down, surprised, as his stomach let out a hungry growl.  
  
"I'm working on it, I'm working on it," Brock said, already letting a fire catch while he dug around in his pack for cooking utensils.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Brock turned to smile at him. "It's a habit I picked up when travelling with Ash. He was always hungry, but whenever his stomach growled, I knew he was running on empty, so when I heard his stomach, I'd start cooking."  
  
Soon, he was chopping and dicing, stirring, and slicing. He hummed the whole time, a deep, gentle sound, almost like a lullaby. After a while, Shawn leaned back, listening to the rhythmic sounds of Brock preparing dinner mix with his humming. Slowly, his eyelids began to feel heavy, and he let them close.  
  
"Yow!"  
  
The scream woke Shawn up from his sleep, causing him to fall off of the stump. "What happened," he asked as he rubbed his sore head.  
  
Brock was holding his elbow. "I accidentally hit my elbow on the ground as I was reaching for some of the food."  
  
"Let me see it," Shawn demanded as he walked over. He took Brock's elbow in his hand, touching it gently. It was the one that he had rolled the small tree off of after the Snimon attack. It was scraped and bruised, and had turned a deep purple. It was amazing he could still use it. "Why didn't you tell us about this," he asked as he got out Brock's bandage wrap and ointment and proceeded to treat the elbow.  
  
"It didn't seem as bad as Misty's so I saw no reason in slowing us down with it."  
  
Misty waddled over to them with the help of Gary. She reached down and slapped him hard across the back of the head. "What's wrong with you, you rock head?" she screamed as he held his head. "If you get hurt, you're supposed to let one of us know! What makes you think you have to act all macho, and tough it out?  
  
"Hold up, you guys," Shawn said as he turned toward the edge of the clearing. "Something's coming."  
  
In an instant, all of them were at the ready. Even Misty had a pokeball ready. Shawn held his breath, feeling his heart hammering the inside of his chest. What is it this time, he thought. If it's another digimon, we're in trouble.  
  
They were all quiet as they listened to the rustling get closer. Then the source burst out of the leaves. It was, indeed, three more digimon, along with two people. The blonde boy's eyes went to a slit as he reached for his belt, only to come up with nothing.  
  
Gary noticed and broke into a smile. He's a trainer! It is him! It's amazing how, after being away from it for so long, it's still his automatic response to reach for his pokeballs. "Some habits never die, do they, Ashy boy?"  
  
* * *  
  
In another dimension, far away, where pokemon run wild, dirt gets sucked into an electric, blue orb as the tear widens, the bottom now slightly lower than the surrounding forest floor.  
  
* * *  
  
In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:  
  
With the help of the others, and a stroke of bad luck, Shawn has finally found Ash/T.K. Will he be able to convince the Pokemon Master/Digidestined to help him in his quest to rid his world of Giovanni? What awaits them in the Pokemon Dimension where Domino is gathering a search party? Find out all this and more in the next exciting chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return, Chapter 7: The Rift is Widening. 


	7. The Rift is Widening

****

Author's Note: Thanks for all of the great reviews on the 6th chapter. I'm glad to see that you all liked it, even if it did take me forever to get it posted. The problem with posting so many chapters at once is that I don't get to hear about specific parts. I really wanted to know what you thought about Misty's response to the letter, and that entire situation. If anyone has anything to say about it, I'd like to hear them. Anyway, I won't tie you up any longer. On with Chapter 7!

Chapter 7

The Rift is Widening

T.K. stared at the boy until a smile broke out on his face. "Gary?" The boy nodded, and he moved his gaze to the rest of them. "Misty? Brock?"

They broke into smiles, too, as they nodded.

From behind them, a certain electric rodent ran up to him and jumped into his arms. "Pikachu? You're here, too?" he asked as he hugged his friend tightly.

"Pikachu!" the pokemon cried happily, and jumped up onto his accustomed spot on his shoulder, much to the obvious displeasure of Patamon, who still sat on top of his hat.

"Hey, Ash," Brock said, then put his hand behind his head. "Oops. I mean, T.K. I keep on forgetting. I've called you Ash for so long that it's still hard to get used to it."

"That's okay, Brock.," T.K. smiled. "Davis does that all the time. Worst of all, he never knew me as anything but T.K., and he still can't get it right."

That smile almost melted Misty. She leaned hard on Gary, who almost fell over. She didn't notice, though. She was lost in the depths of his deep, blue eyes. They weren't the chocolate brown ones that she had fallen in love with, but they were every bit as dreamy as before.

Kari noticed the way Misty was staring at T.K., and quite unconsciously moved a step closer to him.

Misty noticed, and their eyes met, both of them flashing dangerously. They were both broadcasting the same message, and it was clear. You stay away from my guy!

"Um, hey," T.K. said hesitantly, trying to break up the staring war that the two girls had declared on each other. "What are you guys doing here, and how did you get here?"

"Yeah, that's a funny story," Gary said as he held up the Dimension Ball. "Gramps tried to fix the Dimension Ball, but he decided to add some new features. No one knows what they are, but they messed with the guidance system, and we ended up here, instead of in your world."

T.K. sweatdropped as he lowered his head. "That sounds like Professor Oak, alright." He looked up again, this time, focusing on Shawn. "You still haven't answered my other question. Why are you all here? And who are you? I don't recognize you at all."

Shawn smiled as he walked up to T.K. and offered him his hand. "My name is Shawn Rae. It's a pleasure to meet you."

T.K. smiled back as he shook Shawn's hand. "But …"

Shawn's smile widened. "Yeah, the reason we're here. It's all because of me, but it's a really long story, and Misty and Brock are both injured. Is there a way we can get out of here to somewhere a little safer to talk?"

"Sure," he nodded. "Just follow me."

He led everyone back out of the forest to where he and Kari had come in through a monitor that sat on top of a rock. On the other side, some people were sitting there waiting for something.

Shawn recognized all of them, but he kept his mouth shut as T.K. gave them instructions.

"Okay," he said, "everyone stand behind me and Kari. You don't want to be left behind." He lifted his digivice up to the screen, and both of them glowed brightly. "Look out, guys," he yelled to the people on the other side, who had turned to look. "I'd move if I were you." He smiled as they all scampered out of the way. "Okay, back to the real world!"

In a flash, they were sucked through the monitor, and fell through the other side, piling on top of each other.

Tai walked over to them, laughing. "That's what you get for trying to take so many people through at one time, T.K.! If we had known you'd be bringing this many, we would have cleared a landing strip!"

There was general chaos as everyone struggled to disentangle themselves from everyone else. Shawn managed to roll off Gary, just to find himself in an awkward position over Misty, his arm over her shoulder, while his chest was just inches from hers. They both blushed as they hurried to get out of it.

T.K., however, had landed right on top of Kari. They both blushed as they lost themselves in each other's eyes, inches from each other.

Brock unintentionally broke the moment as he pushed the heavy Persian off of his chest. "Nice to know some things never change, T.K. You're still as careless as ever."

T.K. snapped out of it as he and Kari struggled apart. He smiled stupidly at Brock. "Yeah, I guess I just didn't stop to think."

"Nothing new there," Gary said as he stood up and brushed himself off.

Kari looked around as she sat on her knees. "Hey, where are Patamon and Pikachu?"

They looked toward the monitor as it lit up again. Out of it flew a yellow mouse and an orange and white ball.

"Whoa!"

"Pika!"

They crashed up against the wall, and went out as they hit the floor. T.K. rushed over and scooped both of them up. "Are you guys okay?" Their eyes fluttered open at the sound of his voice. Pikachu cooed and dug back into his arms. Patamon got a wide grin on his face as he watched the pokemon.

"Not used to dimension hopping, are you, Pikachu," Patamon said with a sneer.

Pikachu's eyes went back open as he glared at Patamon, sparks starting to come from his cheeks. "Pikachu-u!"

T.K.'s eyes went wide as he remembered that he was holding a pokemon that could cause an electric storm. "Patamon, was that comment really necessary?"

Patamon crossed his tiny arms over his chest as he threw his nose up in the air. "I was just stating the obvious. He almost lost his digi-doodles back there."

"Pika!" Electricity shot from Pikachu and surrounded Patamon, and, in turn, T.K., lighting them both up.

Kari ran over to them. "Pikachu, stop! You're shocking T.K., too!"

Pikachu stopped and looked up at T.K., staring at his frizzled face. "Pika," he said in apology.

"Don't worry, Pikachu," T.K. reassured the electric mouse. "I'm used to it, remember?" He looked down at Patamon, who was splayed out and unconscious. "I just wish I could say the same thing about Patamon."

He set Patamon down on the table gently while Pikachu jumped off of him to run around to the other side. He looked up at T. K. for a moment as the boy nodded his approval. Sparks popped from his cheeks again as they surrounded Patamon again, jolting him back up.

"What did you do that for," Patamon demanded as soon as the electricity stopped.

"Pika-pika-chu Pikachu," he answered, turning his head as he crossed his arms.

"You were waking me back up? You're the one who knocked me out!"

Pikachu turned back to glare at Patamon. "Pi pika chu chu."

"I started it? That's not very mature!"

"Pikapi Pi Pikachu!"

"I'll show you insulting! BOOM–"

Before he could attack Pikachu, however, Gatomon jumped in between them, putting her paws up in their faces. "Honestly," she scolded them, "you two are as bad as a couple of spoiled kittens! You both should be doing a little growing up!"

They both knew she was right, but neither of them was going to admit it to the other. They both turned away, giving rude snorts as they stuck their noses into the air.

T. K. smiled at the scene, then laughed as a thought hit him.

Patamon looked up at him, curious. "What's so funny, T. K.?"

"Oh, nothing," he said, still laughing. "I was just thinking that you can take out the greatest of the Dark Masters without even touching them, but you can't take a little Thunder shock."

Patamon scowled back at him. "That's not funny, T. K."

Pikachu turned around and went over beside Patamon.

"What?" Patamon demanded, "Do you want to make fun of me, too?"

"Pika," he answered as he shook his head. "Pika Pika Pikapi."

Patamon's eyes widened as his face lost its rude appearance. "You didn't know I had done something like that?"

Pikachu shook his head again. "Pikapi Pikachu."

"You respect anyone who can be strong enough to do something like that?"

Pikachu nodded.

Patamon was almost struck speechless. "Well, thanks, Pikachu!"

"Oh, T. K.," Brock said, reaching into his backpack, "I almost forgot! We brought something for you." He fished out the pokeball belt and threw it to T. K., who caught it deftly.

He examined it, turning it over in his hands. "My belt?" He looked up at Brock. "But why did you bring me this? There aren't any pokemon in this dimension, so I never have an opportunity to battle anyone."

"Actually," Shawn said, stepping up, "that's where I come in."

* * *

Shawn told them all his story, and now he sat in Kari's room, going over it again with T.K. and Kari, while Patamon and Pikachu continued to argue constantly. The Persian had stretched out on the floor, and was watching them both as if he wouldn't mind pouncing on both of them and batting them around for a while. Gatomon had her head under T. K.'s pillow, trying to shut out the noise.

"Let me see if I understand what you're saying," T. K. said, crossing his arms over his chest. "You want me to leave the DigiDestined to come to your dimension as Ash Kechum to once again battle Team Rocket, just like the hero in your video games, is that it?" His eyes flashed dangerously, as if he was daring Shawn to say so. All action in the room stopped as five pairs of eyes turned to watch the two of them.

Shawn was taken back by his attitude on the subject. "I didn't mean, I mean, I didn't think …"

"That's just it," T. K. snapped, almost jumping on him. "You didn't think. My life is here, now. Ash Kechum is gone. I am Takaru Takaishi." He stood up and went to the door. He turned back around as he opened it before going through. "Go home, Shawn, and learn to do something for yourself for once. The person you're looking for is no more."

Shawn's eyes closed to slits. "I don't think so," he said, standing up and walking up behind him. "I don't think he's gone at all. In fact, I think he and the boy standing before me are one and the same."

T. K.'s eyes closed to match his. "Well, then, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but you thought wrong." With that, he walked out and slammed the door behind him.

Kari stared at Shawn for a moment, then ran out after T. K. "T. K., wait!"

The Persian got up and walked over to Shawn as he flopped down, the determination on his face from a moment ago crumbling like dust. It head butted his side gently in reassurance.

Shawn looked down before scratching the big cat behind the ear. "Persian, what am I going to do? I had no idea that he would respond like this. I'm not strong enough to beat Giovanni on my own. I know for a fact that T. K. is strong enough, and so does he. Why won't he help me? How am I supposed to free my world without him? He's the key to so much, I know it. I can feel it! But, if he won't come, …" He bowed his head slightly, struggling to hold his emotions in check. He had come so far, and had been so close, just to meet up with the one thing that could ruin the entire thing: The wall known as T. K. "Oh, mom, what am I supposed to do, now?"

Patamon and Pikachu stopped bickering to turn to him, catching the depression in his tone. Even Gatomon pulled her head out from under the pillow.

She hopped down off of the bed and jumped up on a box on the floor so she would be at his eye level. "Shawn, are you alright?" she asked gently, her paw coming down to rest reassuringly on his shoulder.

"No, Gatomon," Shawn answered, shaking his head, "nothing's alright. My world is enslaved by a ruthless dictator, and the only person strong enough to free them has sworn off anything to do with his previous life."

Gatomon caught how he mentioned his mother. "Is your mom there, too?"

"No, she's dead. Killed by the very man that destroyed the rest of my world. She's been dead for a year."

Gatomon looked away slightly. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't catch that part."

"Don't worry about it. You can't predict what you don't know." He was silent for a moment before he continued. "She's the one who told me about T. K. I don't get it. Why is he so bent on separating himself from the Pokemon Dimension? It wasn't where he was from, so what? It's still a part of him. He wouldn't be who he is today if it weren't for every one of the experiences he's ever had." He heard mutterings of agreement from Pikachu and Patamon on the bed, just now realizing that they were listening, too. "Then again, my world isn't the Pokemon Dimension or the Digimon Dimension. I guess he has no real reason to help me at all. Maybe I'm just fooling myself. Maybe he's right. Maybe I should learn to do something for myself for a change." He stood up abruptly and turned to leave the room. The Persian looked back at the two digimon and Pikachu, then followed him out.

Gatomon looked at Patamon and Pikachu. "Well, what are you waiting for? Let's go after him! Who knows what he's going to do?"

* * *

Kari finally caught up with T. K. halfway down to the ground floor of the building. "T. K., wait up!"

Finally, he heard her and turned around, a look of surprise on his face. "Kari? Is something wrong?" The next thing he knew, his cheek stung red as Kari's hand flew across it.

"What's wrong with you, T. K.? That boy asks for your help, you bite his head off, turn around and storm off, then you ask me if something's wrong? Of course, there's something wrong! An entire world is enslaved! Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

T. K. looked taken aback for an instant, then he turned his head away. "It's not my problem anymore."

Kari's face went wide as she staggered back in shock. "T. K. …"

"T. K. Takaishi, you ought to be ashamed of yourself," Tai said, scowling as he walked up behind them. "What happened to the guy I knew who would help anyone who needed it in any way he could? You have the Crest of Hope, for crying out loud! And what are you spreading? Despair, pain, and misery. What's your problem?"

"You people just don't get it, do you? I'm not from that dimension," T. K. yelled in his face. "I never was! Nothing in it has anything to do with me anymore! You could never understand!"

"Uh, hello?" Tai yelled back. "I've helped save the Digital World twice, now, thank you very much! That wasn't _my_ dimension, and yet I gave everything I had to protect it. It wasn't yours, either, but you gave every bit as much as any of the rest of us!"

"That was different! I was _destined_ to help protect the Digital World! Me ending up in the Pokemon Dimension was just a fluke of … of …"

Tai's eyes closed to slits as his voice went threateningly calm. "Say it, T. K.! _Fate!_ A fluke of _fate_! Or are you too afraid that it wasn't as much of a fluke as you'd like to believe?"

T. K.'s face went livid. "Don't talk to me about _fate_, Kamaiya. I already know more than I'd like to." He turned to storm off again, but was blocked by an outstretched arm in a green overcoat as Matt stood up off of the wall he had been leaning against, quite unnoticed by the raving T. K.

"As much as you might hate to hear about it, little brother, it's something you should be thinking about. Have you ever stopped to consider how much has happened to us in our lives, and yet how little of it was due to chance? Have you thought about how heavily fate has played a role in our lives compared to everyone else's? It's been playing us, almost like puppets, since the day we were born. How can you be so arrogant as to believe that you could get away from it for so many years?"

"Are you suggesting that I'm supposed to be a protector of the Pokemon Dimension, too? Don't be ridiculous! It has never needed a protector!"

"Of course not," Matt replied calmly, as if they were discussing the day's events at the dinner table. "Do you know why that is? Because _you_ were there to take care of it. Did you ever stop to think about how much you really did for that world? Can you imagine what would have happened to it if you hadn't been there?"

Images flashed, unbidden, through his memory, stirred up by his brother's words. Team Rocket stealing hundreds of people's beloved pokemon. Abused pokemon being used in cruel laboratory experiments. Thousands of pokemon gathering and crying out, powerless to stop the appearance of a single pokemon out of legend with the power to destroy the world. He knew that he had done a lot, but he also knew that he had a different life now, and he could never go back to the other one, no matter how much he missed it. It hurt him deeply, down in the center of his heart.

Matt sensed what his little brother was feeling, and put his hand on his shoulder.

T. K. growled as the pain turned to frustration, and the frustration into anger. He threw the hand off as he stormed off again. "You guys just don't understand! You never will! Just leave me alone!"

* * *

Shawn walked. He kept on walking until he felt like stopping. He wasn't paying attention to where he was going, only on keeping one foot constantly in front of the other. Finally, he found himself in a park, far away from everyone else. He sat down, leaning up against a tree with a sigh.

"How am I supposed to beat him? I can't even get his badge, and I'm willing to bet that the pokemon he uses for official battles aren't the only ones he has at his disposal."

"Well, the first step would be to practice," a small, squeaky voice said. He looked up to see Gatomon, Patamon and Pikachu standing there in front of him.

"You followed me here?"

"Of course," Gatomon answered, winking with one eye in an expression she must have picked up from Kari. "We didn't know what you were going to do, so we thought we should keep an eye on you."

Shawn smiled slightly as he leaned his head back against the tree again, his eyes drifting shut. "Don't worry about me. The stupidest thing I might do has already been done. I should have never come here. I've troubled so many people to get here, and it's all been for nothing." The smile left his face as he sighed again. "I was so sure that T. K. would be willing to help. I mean, he's just that kind of guy, right? It's in his nature, or so I thought. Instead, I come here, and it turns out that the last thing he wants to do is go back there."

"Don't be so hard on T. K.," Patamon said, dropping down to the ground beside him. "I'm not sure why he doesn't want to go back, but there's bound to be a reason. You're right, he does like to help people. But he also has a soft heart. Maybe going to your dimension reminds him too much of the Pokemon Dimension, and all of the things he misses there."

Pikachu brightened up as he turned his face up to Shawn. "Pika, pika! Pikachu chu!"

Gatomon turned to look at Pikachu as she translated. "Pikachu says that must be it! He does miss the Pokemon Dimension, and that's why he doesn't want to go with you. Because he feels like he doesn't belong there anymore!"

Shawn stared at her incredulously. "How did you get all that out of eight syllables?"

Gatomon just stared back. "That's just how the translation went. Not my fault you humans are too wordy."

Shawn just shook his head, refusing to respond. "Anyway, why wouldn't he feel like he belongs there? I mean, I can understand how he might miss so many things, but so many other things are on the line. How can he stand to be so selfish when so much may depend on him?"

"You know, T. K. talks about the Pokemon Dimension all of the time," Patamon said, stepping forward. "He's always saying how much he misses it, and what he would give to go back to travelling all over the world challenging other trainers, the only thing he had to worry about being where he would be able to find the next challenge. He loved it. In a way, I guess it was like he was still a Digidestined, with all the thrills of a partner, facing off together against all sorts of challenges, without the worry of living to see the next day."

Shawn dropped his head. "Yeah, I can see how he would miss that. I'm really in the same boat. Life was so quiet before Giovanni came. Yeah, sure, I found it a little boring. A normal life is rarely exciting. But then, the grass really does look greener on the other side. Sure, there were no pokemon, no digimon, and the closest thing to an adventure was when I rode in my friend's car, but there were also no worries. There was no death, no pain, and no pressure to keep yourself hidden at the risk of losing your life. Things weren't necessarily better, just … simpler. There was less you had to worry about." He raised his head as he looked up at the sky. "That's really why I've come here, why I've done all that I have. I want to get back to that life, that … simplicity. But, more than that, I want to give everyone else a chance at it, too." His eyes shut as he remembered the boy whose pokemon he had beaten up in the name of punishment. "I'm tired. My very soul is tired. I'm tired of lying. I'm tired of hiding behind a false truth. I'm tired of the best I can do to help someone is to mentally torture them to save them from being killed. I'm tired of having to be satisfied with lesser evils. It's not the way the world is supposed to be!" He opened his eyes, and they saw the pain that was there as he mumbled softly, "It's not the way I'm supposed to be."

Gatomon looked away sadly, then brightened up as an idea hit her. "Hey, I got it! You want to become stronger, right? Well, I know we may not seem like it, but you're looking at two of the strongest digimon in the entire Digital World! We may not be able to go with you to help, but we could fight you, and help you to train!" She turned to look at Patamon. "What do you say? Are you up to it?"

"Definitely," Patamon nodded. "Ever since T. K. told me about Poke-battles, I've wondered how I would stand up in one. After all, I'm his partner, and if he can't depend on me in anything, who could he depend on?"

"Pi," Pikachu said decisively, jumping forward. "Pika, pika, pikachu pi chu."

Gatomon smiled. "Pikachu says, Him! And you can depend on him, too. He'll help you train in any way he can." She stood carefree as she stared at Shawn. "So what are you waiting for? Let's go!"

Shawn smiled. "Fine, have it your way," he answered, grabbing a pokeball and throwing it up as he jumped back. "Nidoking, go!" As soon as the pokemon was out, Shawn spoke again. "Training time, Nidoking! The three in front of you have generously offered to be your sparring partners. Don't be fooled by their size. They may be small, but they're powerful."

Nidoking grunted in response, taking a steady stance.

Patamon fluttered forward. "I've got this guy! I've handled bigger than him before!" He puffed out his chest. "BOOM BUBBLE!"

The burst of air blew forward, hammering into Nidoking. Shawn gasped in surprise as Nidoking staggered back, grunting, and then braced himself to stop the movement. "Nidoking, are you okay?"

The pokemon just turned around and snorted at him. He was fine. He turned back to face Patamon.

Patamon just stared back at him. "Oh, so you want some more, do you? Okay, BOOM BUBBLE!" But the bulky pokemon just knocked it away as Patamon stared in shock. "BOOM BUBBLE, BOOM BUBBLE, BOOM BUBBLE!" He launched a barrage of them, but Nidoking only knocked them away again. "I don't believe it! I'm not doing anything to him!"

"Pika, pika," Pikachu said, turning away slightly. "Pikachu."

"Huh?" Patamon said, not catching it.

"He said, that much is obvious," Gatomon called, translating. "He said, why don't you just charge at it and headbutt it?"

"Alright, I will!"

Pikachu and Gatomon jerked to attention, staring at him with wide eyes as Patamon bundled himself up and prepared to launch himself. "Wait, Patamon," Gatomon called, "I don't think he meant it literally!"

It was too late. Patamon launched himself at top speed, aiming right for Nidoking's chest. Unfortunately for him, Nidoking was ten times his size. He caught the poor digimon in his hands, tossed him up, and swatted him with a swing of his tail, sending him over the heads of a shocked Gatomon and Pikachu, where he collided with a tree, and slid down to the ground.

Gatomon ran over to him. "Patamon, are you okay?"

Patamon, still upside down, opened his eyes to stare at her blearily. "Hey, Gatomon! You're standing on your head! And you have a sister! How come you never told me you had a sister? Will you two stop dancing around? You're making me dizzy!" He tried to move, but only succeeded in toppling over.

Gatomon grinned at him. "You'll be fine." She turned around to face Nidoking. "You can take out a weak rookie, and I'm supposed to be impressed? Let's see how you do against a Champion-Level Digimon! Lightning Paw!"

She ran at the pokemon, her right paw glowing red. Nidoking swung at her, but she just jumped over his arm, flipping over his head, and raking her claws down his back, leaving glowing red marks where they had gone. She landed as Nidoking screamed in pain. She turned to smirk at him confidently, to see his tail coming around just in time to jump out of the way.

"Nidoking," Shawn ordered, seeing that Gatomon was much more powerful than Patamon, and struggling to come up with a weakness that he could use, "use your Dynamic Punch!"

Nidoking roared as his fist glowed, swinging it down at the cat digimon. Gatomon, however, was still too fast. She jumped to his arm, using her arms to flip off of it, and once again going over his head, kicking off of the back, causing him to stumble forward.

Nidoking, panting heavily, turned around to face Gatomon, who hadn't even broken a sweat.

Gatomon noticed his labored breathing and grinned mischievously. "Don't tell me you're wearing out, already! Come on, a little more, and I might actually have to _try_ to dodge your attacks!"

Nidoking growled as he bent back to charge her, but Shawn stopped him before he could play into her paws. "Nidoking, she's trying to make you angry so you'll attack without thinking, but I have a better idea! Let's go three-way!" _Three-way_ was a code name that Shawn had come up with for a combination Double Team and Tri-Attack that he used with his pokemon when he didn't want the opponent to know what was about to hit them, which is exactly what he wanted to avoid now. If Gatomon knew what was coming, she would be sure to find a way to avoid it.

Nidoking glowed slightly as he seemed to split slightly then come back together. It happened again and again until the forms came completely apart, forming what looked like three Nidokings.

Gatomon looked on in shock. "What? He multiplied?"

"Pika, pikachu!"

Gatomon turned to look at Pikachu. "They're just after-images? They're not real? Well thanks for the advice. Now, all I need to do is find out which one is the real pokemon."

Pikachu just shrugged, shaking his head.

Gatomon turned back to the battle. "Well, I guess there's only one way to find out!" She ran at them head on, drawing her paw back. "Light—Wha?" She stopped mid-attack as the three forms started to glow, one red, one yellow, and one blue. All of them brought their hands back, energy forming in the center of their palms. "Pikachu?" she asked, frozen in her tracks, but no voice answered her. The electric mouse was at a loss for answers.

Suddenly, the three forms threw their hands forward, each launching a blast of the same color as they had been glowing. The red one shot a blast of fire, the yellow one shot one of electricity, and the blue one shot one of ice. Gatomon's mouth went wide as she saw the blasts twist together and head straight for her. Panicking, she turned on her heel and ran in the other direction. She wasn't fast enough to outrun the energy blasts, and they caught her full in the back, sending her head over heals, right on top of Patamon.

Pikachu ran over to her, shaking her.

"I'll be fine, Pikachu. Just give him a number for me, okay?"

"Pika," he answered, nodding vehemently. He turned to face the giant pokemon, who had returned to one form. He ran up in front of him, sparking with electricity. "Pika_chu!!_"

Yellow light flowed from Pikachu and surrounded Nidoking, who just stared at him, completely unfazed, as it faded away. Pikachu launched another Thunderbolt, but it fizzled out with the same effect. Again and again, Pikachu launched the same attack, but it didn't even do anything.

"Pikachu, stop wasting your energy! You're not doing anything to him!"

Pikachu stopped out of surprise as he turned to face the direction the voice had been coming from. His face lit up with pure excitement when he saw T. K. standing there, his face set and determined, yet with so much energy behind it. It was the same face he used to have when faced with a challenge. He knew what was coming, and was already running back to him when he called out his next command.

"Pikachu, come back," he called, reaching for two pokeballs at once from the belt hanging from his hand. "Bulbasaur, Squirtle! I choose you!" In a flash of red light, the two appeared, but they were momentarily confused by the strange surroundings.

When they looked back at T. K. and didn't recognize him, Pikachu knew what the problem was: They never knew about Ash having another identity. He ran over to them, and in a rush of pikachus, he explained to them what was going on. When he was finished, they nodded, and turned back toward the Nidoking.

T. K. stared down at Pikachu as the electric pokemon waddled proudly back over to him. "What was that all about, Pikachu?"

Pikachu just held his thumb up, winking. "Pika, pika!" He spun around and pointed at the Nidoking, the same way T. K. used to do when he was Ash and he was pointing toward a destination. "Pikachu!"

T. K. smiled down at him. "You got it, partner!" He turned back to face the battle. "Bulbasaur, get him with your Vine Whip! Squirtle, give him a taste of your Water Gun!"

The vines came first, hitting Nidoking fast and hard. The big pokemon raised its arms to protect its face, but it still staggered back, and Shawn had to jump out of the way to keep from being stepped on. Then the pressurized stream of water caught Nidoking in the chin, sending him toppling up and backwards as if he was a featherweight. Shawn had to jump again to keep from ending up under him when he landed.

"Nidoking? Nidoking, are you okay?" The battered pokemon only rolled its eyes over to look at Shawn, groaning in pain. "You did good, Nidoking," Shawn said, holding the pokeball up and sending him back in. "Rest now." He stood up and took a step toward T. K. "You're strong, just as we both knew you were."

T. K.'s face was unmoving. "Squirtle, if he moves, soak him." The turtle pokemon stepped determinedly in between T. K. and Shawn. "What were you doing attacking them, Shawn? Were you planning on taking them out so Giovanni would have one less thing to worry about if I decided to get in his way again? Is that why you came here? To get rid of them, and me?"

Shawn held up his hands in defense, stepping closer, but jumping back just in time as Squirtle fired at his face. "You got it wrong, T. K.! I wasn't trying to hurt them!"

T. K.'s scowl deepened. "Knocking them up against a tree isn't your idea of hurting them? You've got a funny idea of pain, buddy."

He turned as Patamon struggled out from under Gatomon, then fluttered over to him. "We weren't fighting, T. K.! We were training! He said he was too weak, so Gatomon and I offered to help train him." Patamon sweatdropped as he grinned. "Unfortunately, he wasn't as weak as we thought, and he knocked both of us for a loop! Of course, if we could have digivolved, he wouldn't have stood a chance."

"Pikapi?" Pikachu asked as he stared at T. K. questioningly.

Patamon smiled widely as he answered his question. "Digivolving is kind of like evolving, only for digimon. We get bigger and stronger, like in a pokemon evolution, but we can go back to our smaller forms whenever we want."

T. K. stared at Patamon with a confused look on his face. "So he wasn't attacking you? You were just training?"

Patamon nodded. "Actually, it was Gatomon's idea."

"Really?" T. K. asked, turning to stare at the still-unconscious cat. "What in the world did you hit her with, Shawn?"

"Tri-Attack," Shawn answered, although he didn't move, since T. K. hadn't called off Squirtle. "Don't feel too sorry for her, though. She was all over my Nidoking. The only way I could get her was using Double Team to confuse her while Nidoking powered up the attack."

T. K. walked over to pick Gatomon up, cradling her in his hands. She came to slightly as her eyes opened slowly. "T. K.?" she asked groggily. "Is Pikachu okay?"

T. K. chuckled slightly. "Yes, Gatomon, Pikachu is fine."

"Good," she said softly, her eyes already to drift shut again. "I didn't want to see him hurt." And she was out again.

T. K. grinned, then sat her gently down on the ground. He held out the two pokeballs he had thrown. "Good job, you two. It's been too long since we've worked together like that." They both saluted happily, Bulbasaur with a vine, and Squirtle with a foot, right before they disappeared in a flash of light. T. K. turned away as he snapped the pokeballs back on the belt, then bent over to pick Gatomon back up again. "I guess I owe you an apology, Shawn, on several accounts. I misjudged you, both now, and when you asked me to come with you. I shouldn't have blown up at you at Kari's. I guess it's just not been long enough since I left the Pokemon Dimension. I haven't really gotten over all I've left behind."

Shawn walked cautiously toward him. "Does this mean that you'll come with me?"

T. K. shook his head. "No, I'm not coming. I still stand by my statement that it's something you need to do, yourself. My life is here, now, and I'm not going back there. I'm sorry, but it's the life that's been dealt to me, and there's nothing I can do about it, no more than you can undo what has happened to you."

Shawn dropped his head. "Fine. I can't force you to come. It's your call, Chief. Just one last request, though. We still have several days until the Dimension Ball is restored. Could you help me train?"

T. K. nodded. "Sure, I can help with that."

"Thanks. I'll see you tomorrow, then." Shawn turned around to walk off, but stopped a distance away. "Oh, and by the way, there will never be enough time for you to get over what you've left behind. Trust me on this. It's something I'm still struggling to come to terms with. It will always be a part of you, no matter who you become."

T. K.'s head dropped. "Yeah, I know."

The two walked on in silence, heading toward their destinations in opposite directions.

* * *

"Tell me again, Domino," James complained as the group sat on a group of rocks overlooking Pallet Town, "what are we doing going to Nowheresville?"

Domino didn't even bother looking at him. "Surely it's soaked into even your miniscule mind, Grunt! All of the people we talked to in Viridian City said that Shawn went toward Pallet Town. So, since we're the search party, that's where we're going."

Jesse turned to face Domino. "You never told us just what got you so worn out back in Viridian Forest. I don't mean to be prying, but I certainly wouldn't mind knowing."

Domino's head dropped. "I was chasing down an elusive pokemon, okay?"

Suddenly, Jesse and James went starry-eyed. "Was it a rare pokemon?"

"No, it was just a Caterpie. It got me in the face with some webbing, and I wanted to rip it to shreds, but I couldn't catch it."

"What did it look like?" Meowth was looking over her shoulder, but she didn't notice.

"Like any other insect vermin in that forest, except it only had one antenna."

Jesse, James and Meowth all exchanged glances. "Not to seem rude, Domino," Jesse said, pointing to the top of her backpack, "but it seems that while you wasted all of that time trying to catch it, it had already caught you."

Domino practically tore off the backpack bringing it around so she could see it. When she did, she almost screamed. Sure enough, there it was. The same pokemon that she saw in the forest was now staring at her from behind the handle on top of the backpack. "What are you doing here," she yelled. "I thought I told you to leave me alone!"

She brought her hand back to brush it away, but stopped as a deep roaring sound echoed around them. All of them, the Caterpie included, looked around trying to see what caused it.

"What was that?" James asked.

Meowth looked around the clearing, struggling to pick something out. His cat eyes picked out two yellow eyes at the edge of the clearing. "Uh, guys, I think I found it!"

Before they could turn around and find what he saw, it jumped out of the woods, charging at them at an incredible speed, then stopping right in front of them in a cloud of dust, its red mane like fire flowing off of its great neck.

"Unbelievable," Jesse whispered in awe. "It's an Arcanine!

"Arcanine?" James asked, dumbstruck.

"That's right," Meowth piped up. "Its speed is legendary, and it's probably the biggest dog you'll ever see!"

Domino's eyes flashed greedily. "Legendary, huh? Well, what are you bums waiting for? Capture it!"

"Right!" Jesse and James grabbed the pokeballs at their sides and threw them.

"Arbok!"

"Weezing!"

"Go!"

"Arbok," Jesse called to the giant cobra, "wrap yourself around it! Don't let it go anywhere!" Obediently, the great snake curled itself tightly around the Arcanine, who only looked at it curiously.

"Weezing," James called, "use your Smog attack!"

"Wheeze," the gas ball sighed, releasing a cloud of poisonous gas.

As the gas obscured their vision, they each got a spare pokeball ready.

"Okay," Jesse said as she drew back her arm, "that should have loosened him up a bit! Let's do it!"

They threw the balls into the cloud where the pokemon had been and waited as they disappeared from view. In an instant, they came hurling back, empty, and hitting both of them square in the foreheads.

"What's going on?" James whined. "It's like they got knocked back at us!"

They watched as the gas cleared, revealing a deflated Weezing, an unconscious Arbok, and a very unfazed Arcanine.

"Huh?" Meowth gasped as his mouth fell open. "That Arcanine wasn't even bothered by it!"

Suddenly, the Arbok stirred, and the head of the mighty Arcanine was the first thing that it saw. It reared back in fear, and instinctively bit the fire pokemon in the leg.

The Arcanine reared back as it roared in pain. It turned around, snarling at the Arbok, who looked like it had just swallowed a very big block of ice. In the next instant, Arcanine had grabbed its head in its mouth and threw it over Team Rocket's heads. Then it turned around and charged Weezing. It caught it hard, sending it into the distance.

"Uh, oh," James said as they cowered against the rocks as the Arcanine turned its rage-filled gaze on them. "We're out of pokemon, aren't we, Jesse?"

"Yep."

Suddenly, the Caterpie jumped out in front of all of them, staring down the dog.

"Huh?" Domino gaped, staring unbelievingly at the worm pokemon. "Is it … defending us?"

"Well, you gotta give it one thing," James said, more than willing to let the pokemon entertain the Arcanine while he got away, "it's got guts!"

"Not for long, it don't," Meowth stated as he watched the two of them stare each other down, the Caterpie daring, and the Arcanine not sure the little creature was worth the effort. "If that little bug goes up against Arcanine, there won't be nothing left to bury, unless you're into cremation."

In an instant, the Arcanine charged, but the Caterpie rolled out of the way, shooting web string around its legs. At first, the Arcanine ignored it, turning around to charge again, but the Caterpie kept rolling and shooting until the webbing was so thick that the Arcanine could barely move. One more time, and the Arcanine fell, unable to move its feet. As an additional measure, the Caterpie smartly covered the Arcanine's mouth in webbing, as well, preventing it from snapping at anything. Then, almost arrogantly, it crawled up on top of the great pokemon, calling loudly in victory.

"I don't believe my cat's eyes," Meowth whispered. "The little squirt did it! He took out the Arcanine!"

"You know what that means, don't you?" James asked, facing Jesse. "We have an Arcanine!"

"Actually," Domino corrected as she stepped up to the fire pokemon and caressed its mane, "I believe _I_ have an Arcanine. It was, after all, my pokemon that beat it." The Caterpie realized that she was talking about it, and cooed happily.

"Your pokemon?" Jesse asked. "I thought you hated that little insect!"

Domino shrugged as she picked up the caterpillar pokemon. "I guess I've decided to keep him around a little longer. After all, he's already proven himself more useful than all of you." She turned to the Caterpie, holding it up in front of her. "Isn't that right, Caterpie?"

Instead of responding, Caterpie pointed its mouth straight up and shooting webbing up in a fountain, surprising Domino so much that she dropped him. It continued to spout until it was completely surrounded by a cocoon. As it solidified, two lazy eyes appeared on the outside.

"Incredible," Jesse whispered in awe. "It evolved into Metapod!"

"Metapod?" Domino almost hurled. "What a useless pokemon! Just when I start to think it might be helpful, it evolves into the most useless pokemon imaginable!" She reared back to kick it, but Jesse stopped her.

"Don't, Domino! If it's a Metapod, then it won't be long until it evolves again into a Butterfree!"

Domino hesitated. "A Butterfree?"

Jesse nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! Trust me, it's worth the wait!"

Domino put her foot back. "I guess you finally came up with some good advice for a change. Fine, he stays." She pulled out two pokeballs and sent the Metapod into one and the Arcanine into the other, which didn't resist at all. Then she shouldered her pack again as she made ready to leave. "Come on, let's go! I'd like to get to Pallet Town sometime today, and you losers still need to go get your pokemon!"

* * *

In another part of the Pokemon world, the greatest psychic mind in the multiverse awoke from a horrid nightmare. He focused deeply, trying to contact another powerful, although more natural, psychic. Finally, their minds met.

__

MewTwo, the mind replied, recognizing him immediately. _Why do you wake me from my slumbers?_

Lugia, he answered, you know I wouldn't if it wasn't important. A disturbance has been created, and I fear it may tear all existence to shreds.

__

Do you know of the nature of this disturbance?

Yes. It is a portal. Of that, I am sure.

__

A portal? That's hardly a threat to the multiverse. You know as well as I that they appear all of the time.

Yes, but this one is unstable. Its growth rate is increasing rapidly. If it is not stopped, this rip in the fabric of time and space could swallow all of Creation.

__

It is odd to hear you talk of the multiverse as a Creation, MewTwo.

What is so odd about it? If I could be created, what is to say the rest of the multiverse could not be created, as well? Although, if we don't find a way to stop this, it will be a moot point.

__

Point taken. We do not have the power to stop this, for your power does not extend far beyond this world, and I am locked beneath the waves until the time comes for me to rise again. However, there are a few chosen to deal with tasks just as this, and one of them is an acquaintance of both of ours.

MewTwo struggled to think of someone that they had both met. Finally, it hit him.

__

Yes, that is of whom I speak, Lugia answered before MewTwo could say anything. _You must contact him as soon as possible. The fate of the multiverse depends on it._

MewTwo let his head drop. He will not come willingly. You know that. What if he won't come?

MewTwo thought he detected sorrow in Lugia's response. _Then the multiverse, and everything in it, will be destroyed. Existence as we know it will cease to exist._

* * *

__

In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:

Shawn finally seems to have gotten through to T. K. Although the Pokemon Master still refuses to go with him, he has agreed to help train Shawn. Will their efforts be enough? What new horrors await them at the revelation of the unstable portal tear? Will Domino be waiting for him by the time they get back? Find out next time on The Pokemon Master's Return Chapter 8 – _Time to Go!_


	8. Time to Go

****

Author's Note: Wow! I can't believe this story has broken three pages of reviews! That's awesome! I'm so glad you guys are enjoying this. Keep reading, and I'll keep writing!

Thanks to Anthony for his review. Firehedgehog is a great writer, and I respect his works. I'm honored that you would say what you did about this story. If his story wasn't so good in the first place, I never would have written this.

Chapter 8

Time to Go

T. K. walked down the corridor, wondering where he was. "How long is this thing," he asked himself, his quiet voice echoing loudly down the empty hallway, "and what am I doing here?" The fall of his feet surrounded him, sounding like the march of a thousand soldiers. Several times, it would get so loud that he would stop until the sound fell away, fading into oblivion.

Finally, he came into a large room, the stone walls seeming to glow with their own light. He put his hand to the wall, but pulled it back when a voice echoed in his head.

__

You've come, my friend.

T. K. turned to see a form sitting cross-legged in a corner. It looked like a white kangaroo with a thick cord connecting the base of its skull to its back. T. K.'s face broke into a wide smile as the being lifted its feline-like head at him. "MewTwo!"

__

It has been a long time, friend, though I wish this reunion could be on better terms.

T. K.'s smile fell as the telepathic words flowed into his head. "What's wrong, MewTwo?" He struggled to think what it may be. Was Giovanni after him again? No, it couldn't be. MewTwo had erased all memory of himself from all of Team Rocket. Besides, Giovanni was in Shawn's dimension, anyway.

__

Do not dismiss the idea so readily, friend.

T. K. looked up in surprise at MewTwo's response to his own thoughts. "So it is Giovanni?"

MewTwo shook his head. _No, not altogether. A new friend of yours has been followed into my dimension. The portal had been sealed behind him, but the ones following him are persistent. They have torn a hole between dimensions to allow them to slip through._ The psychic pokemon watched T. K. snap alert at the mention of the tear. He didn't need to read his mind to see that he knew what that meant. His reaction was enough. _Yes, you are aware of what that entails. You have seen the results of such holes on your other travels, have you not?_

T. K. nodded. "Yes. Digimon invaded my world when weak spots in the walls between the Digital World and the Real World became too thin to hold itself together. First, in Tokyo when I was little, then in Odaiba just recently."

It was MewTwo's turn to nod. "Correct. And there was distortion, was there not?"

T. K. dropped his head as the memories went through his mind. "Yes, there was. Things would be there, then they wouldn't. Digimon would appear, then disappear. Sometimes you would see a shadow, then it would jump out at you and tear through. There were times I wasn't even sure where I was. If we hadn't managed to seal the tears, both worlds would have fallen in on themselves." T. K. looked up, worry and comprehension dawning on his face at the same time. "That's what's wrong, isn't it, MewTwo? The Pokemon Dimension is going to collapse, isn't it?"

MewTwo's eyes drifted shut in sadness. _Yes, it is in danger of doing so. You and your friends, however, have the ability to seal these tears, do you not?_

T. K. felt like he had swallowed a bucket of ice. He finally saw where this was going. "Yes, we do. Our digivices are designed to be able to open or close portals and tears." He was backed into a corner, and he knew what was coming next.

MewTwo looked at him urgently. _Please, T. K. You have to repair the hole. Both the Pokemon Dimension and your new friend's dimension are in danger of falling apart._

T. K. looked away. He couldn't stand to look at MewTwo when he was asking him for help. "I can't, MewTwo. I can't go back."

MewTwo's head dropped again. _I was afraid you were going to say that._ He stared back at T. K. and made the boy meet his gaze. _Why do you avoid us so? Why are you so afraid of returning?_

T. K. fought against the force holding his head in place, but gave up when his neck wore out. "Because," he finally answered sadly, "if I ever come back, I'm not sure I'd be able to leave again."

MewTwo's eyes slanted angrily. _T. K., I know you are stronger than that. You have proved it to me again and again. It is a mere excuse to avoid going through the pain of seeing all that you have left behind. But if you refuse to do anything,, your feelings of returning will be a moot point because there will be nothing to return to._ T. K. felt the psychic pokemon reach into his mind as memories of his time in the Pokemon Dimension flooded his head. _Can you really let it all die just because you are too busy feeling sorry for yourself?_

T. K.'s hands flew to his head, as if he could block out the thoughts by covering his ears. "MewTwo!" he screamed, "Get out of my head!"

He felt him release his head as the images faded from his mind. MewTwo dropped his head in shame. _I am … sorry, friend. I … lost my temper. I should not have invaded your thoughts like that._

T. K. stared at his friend for a moment. The same friend that he had risked his life to save, not once, but twice. The same friend that had done the same thing for him and hundreds of pokemon without a second thought. Now, that friend was in danger again, along with countless others, and he was refusing to help because he didn't want to get hurt. What all of his friends had said to him since Shawn had appeared returned again, and he realized how right they had been. If he let MewTwo down now, everything he had done to help him in the past would be for nothing. More than that, if he let both of those dimensions fall, destroying all of those innocent people, his whole life, every time he had ever helped someone, every time he had ever done something good would amount to nothing. No matter what he did after this, his life would be pointless.

He walked up to MewTwo and set his hand on the pokemon's bony shoulder. "No, MewTwo, I'm sorry. I was in the wrong. Too much is riding on the line for me to be so concerned with myself." He smirked at the irony of it. "Sometimes, I wonder why fate wouldn't just leave me alone. And yet, here it goes again. It's sending me back to a place I thought I'd never see again to defend a world I thought I'd never have anything to do with except in my dreams."

MewTwo looked up at him. _Fate is only a guide in your life, my friend. It only shows you one of many paths. It is your choices that ultimately decide which path you will take._

T. K. sighed at the pokemon's philosophy. "Yeah, but you can hardly follow your right mind without following it, as well."

MewTwo seemed to grin. _Are you so sure of that? I was designed to be a weapon of war. Such would have seemed to be my fate. Many times, my powers have bordered on being used as such, and many times I have chosen another path. Fate would constantly seem to be pulling me back into battle, but that is not truly what does it, is it? It is the greed of others that keeps returning me to that path. But I resist._ He spread his arms wide, taking in the entire cave. _Now, behold the fruits of my choices. I sit in a cave, secluding myself, and consider the purpose of my life and how different I am from the rest of the world. But if I was to be offered the chance to use my powers for their original intent, to undo all that I have done, I would refuse it to this day. When I look back on what could have been, for the most part, I am content with my life thus far, and yet I have resisted "fate" every step of the way._ He looked T. K. straight in the eye. _Never mistake "fate" with what is the right thing to do, my friend. It does not matter how many predictions are made about you. Foretelling the future is a fragile thing, for the future is always being changed by the choices of others. Perhaps even fate, itself, is altered in that way. I am sure that, somewhere, a prediction has been made about the fall of both dimensions. Then again, perhaps that very prediction has been changed by your decision today. In the end, you can only listen to yourself. Do what your heart tells you is right, not what a 3,000-year-old slab of rock says you are supposed to do._

T. K. smiled at his friend. "Thanks, MewTwo. You're right. The Dimension Ball that brought my friends here will be ready to go tomorrow. I'll come with them then."

MewTwo nodded as he reached behind him and came out with a bundle of clothes. _Now that you have made that decision, you must realize that you will have to accept who you are._

T. K. looked at him blankly. "What do you mean, MewTwo? I know who I am."

MewTwo shook his head. _No, you do not. Somewhere inside yourself, you do, but you have not accepted it. There is something else here, besides the portal. I cannot see what it is, but you cannot deny half of yourself and hope to succeed against it._

Suddenly, it dawned on him what he was talking about. "You want me to be Ash Kechum again, don't you? But I'm not Ash anymore!"

__

Calm down, my friend. I don't want you to be anyone but yourself. You are right; you are not Ash, and never have been. You have always been you_. Ash, T. K., they are only names that you go by, mere labels. They mean nothing. My full name is a list of serial numbers. The scientists only referred to me as MewTwo for simplicity's sake. You are you, no matter what happens. You always have been, and always will be. The things that happened to you while you were called Ash will always be a part of you. They are only some of the building blocks that have made you who you are. You must accept them, and the life that went with it, if you are ever to be whole._

T. K. dropped his head, and a tear rolled from his eye, thinking of all of the things in both lives that he loved. To be whole. To be of both worlds. To be able to have so many experiences that so many others would never have. He truly had been blessed. "Thank you, MewTwo," he said, raising his head to look at him again. The stream from the tears was still there, but there was a determined gleam in his eyes, as if he had finally seen a great purpose. "I think I finally understand."

__

I am happy for you, my friend, and envious. You have found your purpose while I yet search for mine. I wish you the best of luck in your mission. Perhaps I will be able to pay you a visit when you arrive. He held the bundle out to him. _Here, take this as my gift. Wear it as a symbol of the connection of your two lives._

T. K. took it, and saw that it was a sleeveless jacket and cut-off gloves, similar to what he wore as Ash. On the breast of the jacket, and on the back of the gloves, however, there was a pokeball and a digivice with his symbol of hope behind both. He stared at them for a moment, his eyes getting watery again. Then he suddenly jumped on MewTwo, wrapping his arms around him. "Thank you, MewTwo. You have no idea what this means to me!"

MewTwo looked shocked for a moment at the sudden expression of emotion, then slowly wrapped his thin arms around T. K. in response. _You're welcome, my friend. It was the least I could do. You have always been the bearer of hope, even as Ash, and you spread it to many, including me._ He paused for a moment, unsure of what to say, then repeated himself. _It was the least I could do._

* * *

T. K. woke up lightly, his eyes opening to show him the ceiling in his room. He sat up as he pulled his hands in front of him, bringing the bundle under his gaze.

Patamon stirred beside him a moment before waking up, as well, his sleep disturbed by his partner's sudden movements. He stretched his paws and his wings at the same time, letting out a wide yawn. "Is it morning, already?" He got his answer as he turned over to look at the window, where bright light streamed in. "Yep," he responded a little grumpily, bringing one of his ears down in front of his eyes to shade them, "it's morning, alright." He rolled over to look at T. K., then fluttered out to see what he was looking at. "Hey, T. K., where did you get the clothes?"

T. K.'s head snapped up as he realized what Patamon had said about it being morning. It was the day that Misty, Brock, and the others left for the Pokemon Dimension. He threw the covers off, almost catching Patamon under them. He jumped out of bed, barely avoiding stepping on Pikachu, who was already awake, and had been staring at him when he was looking at the clothes. He apologized to them both quickly before throwing on his clothes.

Patamon fluttered over in front of T. K. as he slipped on the jacket, "What's the rush, T. K.?" Then he noticed that it wasn't a jacket he had ever worn before. "Hey, cool jacket! Where'd you get it?"

"From a friend," he said in a rush, "I'll explain the rest later. Right now, we have to get everyone together. I'll tell everyone then."

Pikachu watched the frenzy for a moment, then noticed the gloves, and the pokeball on the side. His face broke into a smile. "_Pika!_ Pikachu!"

T. K. and Patamon stopped to stare at the pokemon. Patamon looked from the gloves to Pikachu, then back again. "Hey, you're right! They are pokeballs!" Then the joy faded as he slumped down in midair. "Does that mean you're going back, T. K.?"

T. K. looked at his partner digimon for a moment. "No, I'm not going back." The faces on the two of them reversed. Then, T. K. grabbed both of them, Patamon under one arm, and Pikachu under the other. "_We're_ going back! All of us!"

Pikachu cooed ecstatically, but Patamon still looked worried. "What are you talking about, T. K.? What do you mean, _we're_ going back?"

"Duty calls, my orange friend! I talked to MewTwo last night, and it seems that the Pokemon Dimension is in need of a few Digidestined! Now, no more questions, either of you! I need to finish getting ready, then we need to go get everyone together. Then I'll answer all of your questions at once!" He sat both of them down, then threw the door open and ran down the hall. In a moment, however, he was back. "Oops! Almost forgot my hat!" He went to pick up the bowl hat, then his eye caught his old Pokemon League cap. He looked from one to the other for a moment, then dropped the bowl hat and slapped the Pokemon cap on his head. He was at the door again before he turned on his heels. "You guys coming, or what? C'mon, let's go!" And he was gone again.

"Wow!" Patamon gasped, still in a daze from all of T. K.'s sudden energy. "I haven't seen T. K. this happy in years!"

"Pika!" Pikachu said, nodding in agreement before they dashed out the door to follow him.

They caught up with him by the front door. His mother had stopped him.

"T. K., where are you going in such a rush? You haven't even eaten any breakfast yet!" She had a bowl of rice for him, and two smaller ones for Patamon and Pikachu.

T. K. slammed on the brakes, then walked into the kitchen at a hurried trot. "Sorry, mom. It's just that something's come up, and we're really in a hurry!"

"Well, whatever it is, I'm sure it can wait until after you've eaten. Now, come over here and sit down, all three of you!"

No sooner had she set the bowls down than T. K. started shoveling it in, one bite barely in before he brought the spoon up to shove another one on top of it.

All three of them only sat there for a few moments, staring at him in shock.

The actions were to familiar to Pikachu, but he was still surprised by the sudden change. _He hasn't eaten like this since …_ T. K.'s mother broke him out of his thoughts.

"T. K. Takaishi!" she snapped.

Patamon and Pikachu both snickered as T. K. snapped up, dropping the spoon in shock, and forcing down the entire mouthful in one gulp as it clattered to the floor.

His mother, however, was still raging. "You know better than to eat like that in this house! What has gotten into you?"

T. K. got over the shock of the yelling, and wilted in embarrassment. "Sorry, mom. I guess I'm just so excited. What's happening today is really important, and I guess I'm trying to rush it."

His mother looked down at Pikachu. "That's right. Your friends are leaving today, aren't they? But why would you be excited about that?"

Patamon went over to whisper in his ear. "Don't you think you should tell your mom where you're going, T. K.?"

T. K. sighed. Patamon was right. "Well, actually, mom, that's not what I'm excited about."

"Oh?" She looked at him curiously. "Then what is it?"

"Well, I'm leaving, too, mom."

She blinked a couple of times, confused. "What do you mean, T. K.?"

He dropped his head again. It was hard telling her what he was planning on doing, but she had a right to know. He had left for the Digital World many times before she knew, but she had been okay with it afterwards. At least this time, he knew ahead of time, and he would be able to tell her. He hoped. He looked to Patamon, then to Pikachu, then back to his mom. "I'm _leaving_, mom. Again."

She noticed the way he looked at the two of them, then she saw that he was wearing his "equipment," as his younger friend, Cody, called it. His pokeballs hung on one side of his belt, while his digivice hung on the other. She set the pan that she had been using down on the counter as she dropped her head. "Oh. I see. You're going with them, then?" She looked up long enough to see him nod. "And your other friends, the other Digidestined, or whatever you call yourselves, are they going, too?"

T. K. nodded. "Probably. When they find out what it is, I doubt I'll be able to talk them into staying here." He looked up in surprise as he heard his mother sob. He was over by her in an instant, his hand on her shoulder. "Mom? What's wrong?"

"I don't know," she cried. "Why don't you tell me? What is it this time, huh? A giant monster bent on universal destruction? A sea of darkness to swallow you up? An evil dictator trying to enslave the entire Digital World? Tell me, T. K., because I don't know. I never know anymore. Ever since last time, every time you go out with your friends, I can't help but wonder if you'll be coming back. I'm almost afraid to let you go, because I don't even know what I'm sending you into!"

"I'll come back safely, mom. I promise."

"But _why_? Why do you have to go?"

He dropped his head again. "It's a portal, mom. There's been a tear in between dimensions in the Pokemon Dimension. If we don't go fix it, that dimension, and the dimension on the other side of the tear, will collapse, and destroy everything on it. We have to go. If we don't, …" He let it hang.

"I know," she mumbled softly, forcing herself to give him a smile. "I know that when you leave on these things, you don't have a choice. That doesn't mean I like it, though." She straightened up and took a good look at him, then reached around and straightened his collar. "Do you have everything you need? Is everything together?"

He smiled back at her comfortingly. "Yeah, mom. I've got everything I need. I just need to get the others together."

She nodded, then turned away, staring into space. "You know, other parents really have it easy."

T. K. looked at her questioningly. "What are you talking about, mom?"

"When they send their kids off, most parents only have to worry about what will happen to them when they get across town," she answered, turning back to him. "Me, I have to worry about what will happen to you in another dimension. You won't even be able to call if you need anything. Or write, for that matter."

He smiled, laughing lightly. "Don't worry, mom. I don't think I'll be gone that long, not this time."

"Okay," she smiled. She looked at his hat, then lifted it up and ruffled his hair before putting it back on. "You be careful, okay?"

"I promise, mom."

* * *

"A hole?" Misty cried. "Back home?"

Tai stood up, pacing a bit before he spoke. "What in the world could tear open such an unstable portal in the Pokemon Dimension?"

"Back in my dimension, Team Rocket had been studying a pokemon called Porygon2," Shawn said, leaning up against a tree. "It's what they used to get there in the first place. It has the ability to open portals between dimensions, but all of the ones it ever created were completely stable."

Brock shot up as an idea hit him. "Hey, do you guys remember that explosion back in Viridian Forest?"

Misty turned to face him. "Yeah. We got a really weird feeling a little before it happened. It took out half the forest." She turned back toward T. K. "Could that have been it?" She was surprised when Izzy answered, instead.

"That certainly seems to be a likely possibility, Misty," he said, typing furiously on his laptop. "If an unstable portal is ripped open suddenly, it can very well cause such massive destruction as you described."

Yolei stared at him, shocked that he could say that so passively. "Well, that's comforting! Could you be any more callous about it, Izzy?"

"I'm not being callous, Yolei," he answered. "I'm merely agreeing on a plausible hypothesis."

Matt shook his head, as if to clear it. "That's not the point. Two dimensions are in danger here, and we have a good idea of where the source is. The only real question is, 'When are we leaving?'"

They stopped as they heard two people hollering to them. They turned around to see Davis and Ken running in sync toward them.

"Hey, T. J.," Davis panted, running up to the rest of the group. "Sorry we're late. Veemon wouldn't stop eating."

Presently, Veemon popped out of his backpack to point out his mistake. "Actually, Davis, you were the one that was eating a lot. We couldn't get you to leave."

Davis sweatdropped, grinning widely. "Hey, I was really hungry, okay?"

Yolei crossed her arms as she scowled at Ken. "Honestly, we've come to expect Davis to be late, but you, Ken? Since you guys experienced DNA Digivolution, I think you've picked up some of Davis's bad habits!"

"Yeah," Davis muttered in Ken's ear, who grinned. "I just wish she had picked up some of Kari's mild manners!"

"What was that?" she screamed, getting up in Davis's face.

"Uh, nothing," Davis squealed, leaning away from her. "Absolutely nothing!"

Misty watched for a moment, then leaned toward Joe, who was the closest Digidestined. "I thought you guys said that Davis had the crest of Courage?"

"That's right, he does," Joe whispered back, pushing his glasses up. "Friendship, too, if I'm not mistaken."

Misty got a strange look on her face, then held it a moment before answering. "For someone who's supposed to have that, he sure doesn't seem to have much of a backbone."

"He does, it just depends on the circumstance. Don't be so hard on him here, though. Yolei's pretty scary when she's mad."

Misty's face only looked more confused. "But I thought she had the crests of Love and Sincerity?"

"Oh, trust me, she's sincere about what she says, and she loves to yell it at people!" He looked at Misty, who now looked more confused than ever, and broke up laughing. "I'd give up trying to figure it out, if I were you. Believe me, though. They've all earned their crests, and I have no qualms of having any of them as our successors."

Misty smiled back, but looked down as the Dimension Ball in her lap started beeping. She grabbed it as she stood up, and yelled to get everyone's attention. "The Dimension Ball has finished charging." She looked to T. K. and smiled. "It's time to go."

T. K. started to get up, but Kari held him back. He looked back at her, but she only shook her head and turned to stare at Izzy, who was setting his computer down and getting out of the way.

"You guys can use my computer to open the portal," he said. "After you guys are through, I'll use this program, here, to plot your course. When that's done, we'll follow using our digivices. As you can see, we've got quite a crowd, so you might want to make sure there's enough room for us to get through."

Shawn nodded in understanding as Misty handed him the Dimension Ball. He waited as Brock, Misty and Gary put a hand on his shoulder. Pikachu and Persian were going to come through with T. K. and the others. "Everyone ready?" They nodded and he waved to the others. "See you on the other side!" He pushed the button, and the world dissolved around them as the screen lit up and sucked them in.

T. K. watched as they disappeared into the monitor and Izzy swung it around and started typing again. He sighed.

The Persian had set its big head in Kari's lap, and she was stroking it between the ears, causing it to purr gently. She looked up when she heard him. "T. K.? What's wrong?"

He sighed again before answering. "I was just thinking. Since they went ahead of us, they're sure to tell Professor Oak that I'm coming, and he'll go get my m- … Mrs. Ke- …" He sighed again, then buckled down and said it. "My mom from the Pokemon Dimension."

"So? What's wrong with that? Aren't you looking forward to seeing her?"

"Well, yeah, but …" He paused for a moment. "I don't know. It's just that, the last time I saw her, I didn't know I had another mom. I mean, I knew I was adopted, but as far as I knew, my birthmother was dead." He dropped his head before continuing. "What am I supposed to tell her? How am I supposed to act when I see her, now that I know that she's not my mother?"

"T. K.," she said soothingly, putting her free hand on his shoulder. "She's still your mother, and even if you have found your birthmother, I'm sure she still loves you, and misses you. Nothing will ever change that."

"I know. But what am I supposed to say? I can't call her mom anymore, can I?"

She looked at him quizzically. "Why not?"

"Well, that'd be like, oh, I don't know."

She smiled comfortingly at him, grabbing him by the chin to turn his head toward her. "T. K., listen to me. Both of them are your mothers, and both of them love you very much! Don't be afraid to call her that!"

"So, what's going on over here?" Matt came over and stuck his head between the two of them, looking at them mischievously.

Kari turned her head to look at him. "T. K.'s worried about seeing his mother from the Pokemon Dimension. He's feeling uncomfortable about how to treat her, since he has your mom, his birthmother, now."

"Oh," he said, getting serious as he sat down beside him, throwing his arm around his little brother. "Don't worry so much about it, T. K.! You're actually pretty lucky. Most people only get one mother. You've got two of them! Just put this stupid concern of yours out of your head. Mrs. Kechum's your mother just as much as mom is. Treat her like it!" He imitated a look of threat on his face. "And if I hear you call her, 'Mrs.' or 'Mam,' or anything but some variation of, 'Mom,' I'm going to whack you around the ears!"

T. K. laughed. "You're right."

"Of course, I am!" He stood up and began to walk off. "Now, I'll just leave you two over here alone!"

T. K. stared after him for a moment, then turned back to Kari. "Did you hear that? He all but accused us of being in love!" Then he realized what he had said, then looked away quickly, his cheeks feeling hot.

Kari blushed as she, too, looked away. "Yeah," she said weakly. "Imagine the nerve!"

Patamon, Pikachu and Gatomon looked at each other for a moment, then sighed at once, dropping their heads, embarrassed by their partners' denial.

* * *

Professor Oak and Mrs. Kechum looked up expectantly as the computer monitor lit up. In a flash, Misty, Brock, Gary and Shawn appeared

Immediately, Professor Oak went over and wrapped his grandson in a bear hug. "You're back! When I discovered that the Dimension Ball had taken an erratic course, I wasn't sure I'd see you again!"

"Gramps!" Gary grunted. "Take it easy, will ya? You're crushing me, here!"

"I'm sorry," he said, grinning widely, then turned to clap each of them on the shoulder. "I'm just glad that you all made it home! What happened?"

"As you said, the Dimension Ball must have veered off course, because we landed in the Digital World, instead of the Digimon Dimension," Shawn answered automatically. "It turned to our advantage, however, as T. K. and his friends had been monitoring the area. T. K. and one of his friends, Kari, entered the Digital World to find out what had caused the disturbance that they had observed. When they found us, they brought us back to the Digimon Dimension, and we were able to go on from there. There was some difficulty in getting him to come back, but then he was contacted by MewTwo in his sleep and found out that there is a tear between this dimension and my own. Upon waking the next morning, he gathered us together and informed us of his intention to bring himself and the other Digidestined here in order to seal the dimensional rift." As he finished, he noticed that they were all looking at him strangely. "What?"

They looked at each other for a moment before Professor Oak answered. "This isn't a military debriefing, Shawn. You can relax."

Shawn looked at him in surprise. "What do you mean, sir?"

"Exactly that!" he exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. "I'm not your commanding officer, Shawn, just a professor. You don't need to call me, 'sir.' You also don't need to give me such a short, succinct, and utterly dry report! And you especially don't need to stand there like someone's shoved an iron rod up your backside! Just look at yourself! You've got the feet planted flat right next to each other, the arms at the sides, the whole bit! You didn't even look me in the eyes through that entire report!"

Shawn looked down at himself. Professor Oak was right. Shawn had taken the stance of a soldier automatically. He forced himself to break it. He spread his legs apart slightly as he rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry about that. I guess old habits are hard to quit!"

"Where's Ash?" They all turned to face Mrs. Kechum as she spoke. After no one answered for a moment, she repeated herself. "You said T. K. was coming with you. That's his name in the other dimension, right? Where is he?"

"Oh, don't worry about that," Brock said cheerfully. "He and his friends just had to trace our trail back here so they could follow. There's quite a group of them, though, and they told us to make sure they had plenty of space to come in."

Professor Oak and Mrs. Kechum nodded in understanding, and they all started clearing stuff out of the way. They had just finished clearing a space that they thought was large enough when the door to the lab burst open and Oak's assistant came running in.

"Rockets! Coming!" he gasped, almost falling on his face from exertion as he came up to them. "Rockets! Coming," he repeated, as if his very life depended on them understanding.

Professor Oak went over and shook him by the shoulders. "Calm down! Take a few deep breaths, then tell us what happened!"

The assistant did as he was told, and after a few moments, he continued. "Team Rocket! They're coming … down the road! They'll be here … any moment!"

Shawn burst into a flurry of movement. "Quick," he told them all, "get up against the wall! Whatever happens, just look afraid! If they ask you anything, pretend like you're too scared to say anything."

"Why?" Misty asked. "What's going on?"

"They're probably the ones that came here looking for me." He turned to Professor Oak. "Professor, if the Dimension Ball is damaged, will you be able to repair it?"

Oak looked at him in shock. "Why, yes! Of course! Why? What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to hold you all as my prisoners."

"What!?"

"I knew it," Brock shouted. "You are a Rocket, through and through!"

"No, Brock," Shawn said quietly, trying to get him to quiet down. "It's only an act. If I can pull it off, I'll be able to get them out of here, and you guys can get off without a hitch!" He pulled out a pokeball, and in a flash of light, Nidoking came out. "Nidoking, Team Rocket's just outside. We're going to be acting like these are our prisoners. If any of them try to move, growl at them really loud and act like you'll crush their skulls in!" He handed the Dimension Ball to Misty. "When I tell you to give this to me, drop it, _hard!_"

No sooner had they finished getting adjusted then someone knocked at the door. "Professor," Shawn instructed, "go get the door. And remember," he said giving him a wink, "if you try any funny stuff, I'll kill you."

Oak went toward the door, Shawn behind him. As he got to it, Shawn reached over and grabbed him by the collar. "Look out the lens and ask who's there."

Oak did as instructed. "Who is it?"

A woman with red hair popped up in front. "To protect the world from devastation …"

A man with blue hair pushed her out of the way. "To unite all peoples within our nation …"

A blonde girl pushed both of them out of the way, and there was a crash as they hit the ground, knocking stuff over. "Will you idiots shut up?" She stepped up to the lens. "Hey, you in there! Is this the laboratory of Professor Oak?"

Oak looked over to Shawn. "Answer them."

"Y-yes," he stuttered convincingly, "s-speaking!"

"Ah, excellent," she answered sweetly. "Perhaps you can help us. You see, one of our members has disappeared recently. We're here looking for him. His name is Shawn Rae. Have you heard of him?"

Oak looked to Shawn again. "Tell her to identify herself."

"W-who are you, young lady?"

The girl on the other side smirked as she tossed her hair. "I am Agent 009, Top Executive in the great organization of Team Rocket. You can call me Domino."

Oak turned to Shawn again. This time, Shawn whispered even lower than usual. "I'm going to push you away from the door. Act like you fall into something." He waited for the professor to nod, then gave him a light shove. There was a mighty crash as he stumbled over a table, knocking it and all the containers on it over. Shawn nodded satisfactorily as some went clattering over the floor. He turned back to the door, swallowing bile and regret at doing this.

Sure enough, there was Domino on the other side and, sprawled on the ground on either side of her, Jesse and James. Domino stared at him in surprise for a moment, then, suddenly, jumped him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Oh, Shawn! You're here! I thought I'd never find you!" She pulled away from him to look into his eyes, and he saw that she was crying. "When I found your uniform washed down the river, I was scared to death I'd lost you!"

James sat up to look at him. "So you're the great Executive who risked his life to save Giovanni's Persian. You're gonna get medals for that!"

Shawn grinned modestly, but was hitting himself inside. The Persian! The one fault in the entire charade! He had completely forgotten about it. If they asked to see it and he didn't have a reason for it not being there, they were all in trouble.

Jesse was up now, too. She looked at the professor, who was still sprawled on the floor. "Professor Oak? Knocked over?" She looked to Shawn. "What's going on here?"

Meowth managed to squeeze between their legs to see inside the rest of the lab. "Hey," he said, pointing, "aren't those the twerps?"

The three of them started pushing to get through, and Shawn let them, leading them to the back of the lab after he picked the professor up by the arm. As they came in, Nidoking shot him a sideways glance. In response, Shawn gave him an imperceptible nod that it was okay and to keep going.

The other three came into the room behind him. When Misty saw them, she almost exploded. "You!" she yelled, jerking forward. In an instant, Nidoking was in front of her, roaring ferociously, his hand pulled back to strike. Instantly, Misty cowered back up against the wall.

"Now, now," Shawn said calmly, walking toward her leisurely. "You weren't going to try to _move_, now, were you? Not after I explicitly told you not to?"

Misty only stared at Nidoking, quivering. "No, no. That's okay. I changed my mind."

"Good," Shawn said, giving Oak a push toward the wall. He walked up next to her, cupping her chin in his hand. "I'd hate to have to damage that pretty little face of yours!" He patted it, then, when she glared at him, he chuckled, backing off.

"Wow," James said, "it really is the twerps." Suddenly, he started looking around the room. "Well, most of them, anyway. Where's the short one with that annoying Pikachu?"

"Actually," Shawn said, "it turns out he's been hiding out in another dimension for the last couple of years."

"Wait a minute," Jesse said, raising her hands up. "You mean to tell me that annoying brat has been completely out of our hair for two years? Two years that we could have spent getting rare pokemon?"

Shawn smiled, laughing slightly. "Yep, that's right. But it would seem that these 'twerps,' as you call them, didn't like that idea much. They've been trying to find him."

"But how could they cross dimensions," Meowth asked. "Domino needed a special pokemon to do it."

"It was actually thanks to the genius of the great Professor Oak," Shawn answered, walking over to where he sat on the floor against the wall. He crouched down in front of him, grinning evilly. "Yes, the good professor has made a fine invention, indeed. A ball that can cross dimensions!" He got back up, then went back over to Misty. "And, thanks to my wonderful friends, here, I've even learned how to use it. They were so kind. They were nice enough to teach me." He held his hand out a little. "Fork it over, Red."

She gave him a look that could kill, but stepped forward to hand it to him. "Misinterpreting" her actions, Nidoking got up in her face again, scaring her. She brought her hands up to cover her face, and dropped the ball.

Shawn glared at her. "You stupid klutz! If you broke it, it will be your head!"

Jesse and James looked at each other. They were both thinking the same thing. Here was a top Executive that was about to get showered with the good graces of their boss.

"Suck-up time?" James asked.

Jesse nodded. "Let's make some brownie points!"

They went forward to pick the ball up, but stared in surprise when they saw that Meowth had already done it.

"Here you go, sir," he said, holding the ball up to Shawn. "You shouldn't have to bend over to get a ball. I'll do it for ya!"

"Thank you," Shawn answered, taking the ball from Meowth. Then he looked at him for a few moments. "Who taught you to talk and walk?" He knew from the show, of course, but this would let him turn their brown-nosing against them.

Meowth stood proudly as he brushed the fur on the top of his head back. "Nobody, actually. I taught myself!"

"Really?" Shawn asked, smiling. "That's impressive! You must be pretty smart." He turned to Jesse and James. "And he's your pokemon? You two must be great trainers." He looked specifically at Jesse, and tossed her a dazzling smile. "And the girl's cute, too!"

Once again, his charm had the desired effect. Of course, the only girl in the entire Pokemon Dimension that could possibly be more conceited than Jesse was Misty.

Jesse went starry-eyed, clasping her hands in front of her. "Finally! A rich, handsome, well-to-do guy has recognized my abilities and beauty! My dreams have come true!" She dashed over to him, grabbing his hand. "Please, let the next words out of your mouth be a marriage proposal!"

Domino had seen that Shawn had been playing with their minds, and had even been enjoying watching it. At Jesse's mention of marriage, however ridiculous the thought might be, jealousy raged inside of her. She came up and pushed Jesse back, sending her into James as the two of them went spiraling backwards. She went over to them and glared wiltingly at Jesse, towering over them in her anger. "How dare you be so rude! A fine Rocket Executive such as Shawn would never have anything to do with the likes of you!" She spun around, crossing her arms over her chest. "Tramp!"

Jesse glared back at her as she stood up, insulted beyond belief. "Tramp? At least I didn't sleep my way to the top, sister!"

Domino turned around, shouting before she had even finished spinning toward her. "How dare you!" They began shouting back and forth, getting louder with every insult.

"Good," Shawn said to himself, smiling satisfactorily, having played them both like fiddles. "A little more of this, and we'll be home free."

But everything came to a halt, even their argument, as all faces in the room turned to face the computer screen, which had started glowing again.

"Oh, no," Shawn moaned. "Too soon!"

* * *

__

In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:

T. K. has finally accepted his entire life, and is coming back to the Pokemon Dimension. Shawn and the other pokemon trainers went first to clear the way. When they got there, they found Domino and the bumbling trio of Jesse, James and Meowth. Shawn had been working on a plan to get them out of there, but now, it seems the Digidestined have picked the worst moment to come through. Will Shawn be able to talk his way out of this one, or will the arrival of the others ruin it for them all? Find out next time on The Pokemon Master's Return Chapter 9 – _Unforeseen Difficulties!_


	9. Unforseen Difficulties

****

Author's Note: Thanks to Trew, who pointed out some errors in my story.

About how Jesse, James, Meowth and Domino shouldn't recognize each other, I'm going at it from the standpoint that they remembered that they were there, but they don't remember _why_ they were there. It just makes it easier for me to put certain characters together if they have a past history.

They still have their original pokemon. You see, I've only seen a few episodes and a few of the movies. Most of my admittedly limited Pokemon knowledge comes from the games, not the show. As a result, I don't know a lot about the new characters that come in during the later seasons, such as Tracy. I don't even know what pokemon he has. I know he has a Marill, but that's about it. I don't even know much about his personality, so it makes it really hard for me to put him in. I'm thinking about him putting in an appearance in the next chapter, but it won't be a lasting one. Like I said, I don't know enough about him. If anyone reading this knows more about Tracy and his pokemon, send me an email, will you? It's in my biography. I need all of the help I can get if I'm going to get Tracy in here at all. I want him to at least show up, that way there's no blank as to what happened to him.

Chapter 9

Unforseen Difficulties

Shawn made a decision as the computer screen glared brighter. He was going to have to carry through with this act to the end, and hope that his friends would forgive him for it. "Nidoking," he yelled as the Digidestined began to take shape in the room. "When they get through, take the Persian from them!"

As the group solidified, they cried in shock as the giant pokemon bore down on them, then crashed through them, sweeping the surprised Persian up in its thick arms and bringing it back beside Shawn.

"Good job, Nidoking," Shawn said as he brought out a spare pokeball. "Persian, get in here where it's safe!" In a flash of light, the Persian disappeared into the ball. He tossed it to Domino, who caught it deftly. "Hold on to that tight. Things are about to get a little rough."

The Digidestined were starting to get over their surprise, and they were fuming. Tai was the first able to speak. "Shawn, what's going on, here? What are you doing?"

Shawn crossed his arms as he smirked arrogantly. "Isn't it obvious?" He waved one arm toward the people against the wall. "Why don't you ask your friends? I'm sure they'll be more than happy to tell you what a good time we've been having. Nidoking, show them how we've been entertaining ourselves while we were waiting for them. I think I heard Mrs. Kechum saying that she wouldn't mind volunteering." Nidoking roared as he ran toward Mrs. Kechum with his arm drawn back.

She cringed back up against the wall, defenseless. "Ash!"

T. K. reached out toward her. "Mom!"

Tai and Agumon were already moving. "Agumon, now!"

"PEPPER BREATH!"

The fireball collided with Nidoking, sending it to the ground. T. K. took the opportunity to push his mother out of the way and away from the pokemon.

"Alright! Great shot, Agumon," Tai cheered.

Agumon, however, didn't look away. "I wouldn't be cheering yet, Tai. Look!"

Tai did, and he took a step back in shock. "What? He's getting back up? But he took a direct shot to the side! What is this thing made of?" Sure enough, Nidoking was getting back up, and he looked mad.

Davis pushed his way in front. "Okay, our turn! We got this guy, no sweat! Right, Veemon?"

"Right," Veemon shouted, jumping out in front of his partner. "Let's kick some traitor butt!"

"Armor D …"

"No!" T. K. yelled from the other side of the room, cutting Davis off in mid-sentence. "We can't digivolve inside the lab! We could bring the entire place down on top of us!"

"T. K. is correct," Oak agreed from his spot against the wall. "You must restrain from overdoing whatever it is you plan to do. If the structural integrity of the building is compromised, the upper floors will collapse!"

Davis turned to Ken. "What did he say?"

Ken's fist was clenched at his side, and his jaw was set. "He said that if we use too much power and damage the building, it will fall, and crush us all underneath it. We have no choice but to keep our digimon at Rookie level." He turned to glare at Shawn. "He, of course, knows that, and was probably planning on it. Wormmon, let's give it our best shot!"

"STICKY NET!" Wormmon shot a string of webbing similar to Caterpie's, covering Nidoking in a net.

"Veemon, go!"

"VEE HEADBUTT!"

Shawn's eyes went to slits, and he spoke dangerously low. "Tail Whip."

As Veemon charged forward, Nidoking ripped loose of the webbing and swung its heavy tail around. Veemon tried to stop, but had too much momentum. The tail caught him with its full force, and sent him flying back into the wall.

Davis ran over to him. "Veemon! Are you okay?"

Veemon staggered up, rubbing his head as his eyes spun around. "Yeah, Davis, I'll be fine. At least, now, I know how a baseball feels!"

Ken's eyes glared as he strained to think of what to do next. "Darn! Your Sticky Net was useless!"

Wormmon dropped his head in shame. "I'm sorry, Ken."

Ken looked down at his partner in apology. "It's not your fault, Wormmon. Shawn's pokemon is just too strong." He turned back to glare at the dinosaur pokemon. "If I understand what T. K. has told me about pokemon, Nidoking is the equivalent of an Ultimate level digimon. We can't fight him as Rookies! If we're going to beat him, we're going to have to digivolve!"

Wormmon looked up at him. "But, Ken! We can't! You heard what they said! If we do, we risk destroying the building!"

"I know," Ken answered, dropping his head. "That's the problem. This building was made for research, not for fighting."

"You're forgetting one thing," Kari said as she and Gatomon came up to the front. "We've already got a Champion-level digimon!"

Gatomon sprang forward, landing lightly right in front of Nidoking. "We've got a score to settle, you and I!"

Meowth had been watching with only a mild interest, but when Gatomon jumped out, he almost did a double take. "Meowth! What a cat!" He was moving before he knew what he was doing, but Jesse reached down and grabbed him, lifting him up to her face.

"Just where do you think you're going, Meowth?"

He spun around in her grip to look back at Gatomon. "Do you see that cat? She's the most beautiful animal I've ever seen!" His eyes turned to hearts as he clasped his hands in front of him. "She's like an angel!"

James got around in front of him, blocking his view of Gatomon. "I hate to break it to you, Meowth, but maybe you haven't noticed that she's one of the good guys! Don't you think that kind of ruins your chances with her?"

Meowth wasn't listening, though. He was zoned out, thinking of Gatomon.

When Pikachu saw Gatomon come out, he leaped forward to try to help her, but stopped when T. K. called after him. "Pikachu, your electric attacks are useless, remember? You can't help her."

Pikachu paused for a moment, then turned back to him. "Pika, pika. Pikachu-u-u," he whined.

"Pikachu says that we can't just stand back and let her fight Nidoking. He'd crush her," Patamon translated. He jumped off of T. K.'s head. "He's right, T. K.! Gatomon can't handle something as big as Nidoking! She may be faster than him, but if he can get a hold on her, she's done for!"

T. K. shook his head, but his face was grim. "No, let's stay out of this a little longer." He caught Shawn turning to throw him a quick glance. "He's waiting on me to do something. Until I know what, I don't want to jump to anything that might play into his hands."

Back in the fight, Gatomon charged at Nidoking, throwing both of her arms back as she powered up. "LIGHTNING PAW!" She brought both arms back around at the same time, leaving red gashes in a glaring X across his chest. Nidoking roared in pain, swinging down to swat at her, but she jumped back out of the way. She charged again, this time jumping over his head and raking her claws down his back, then dodging his tail. Again and again, she charged, one attack barely fading away before she would charge again. Finally, she dodged one last attack, then flipped backwards, panting heavily as she landed.

She kept her eyes on Nidoking as she tried to figure out what was going wrong. _What's going on? I've been using him for a scratching post, but he acts like I've barely even touched him! And why isn't he doing as well as he did in training? He's too slow to catch me, anyway, but he's moving slower than usual._ Her mind flashed back to the fireball catching him in the side. _Could Agumon's Pepper Breath really have hurt him that badly?_ Her eyelids dropped as her eyes focused on the powerful pokemon. _No, that's not it. If I haven't done anything by now, Agumon's one attack wouldn't have been enough to do anything, either._ Her eyes shot back open as a realization hit her like a lightning bolt. _But that means that he's …_

Shawn's face was grim as he watched the fight. Nidoking was strong, but he was getting pummeled. Shawn knew when his partner had just about had it. He couldn't take much more of this. It was time. He threw another glance over to T. K. If he wouldn't act on his own, then he would have to force him to. "Nidoking," he yelled, "Three-way!"

Gatomon glared as the pokemon copied itself again. "Not this time, you don't!" She ran forward, jumping into the air to hurl herself at him. "LIGHTNING PAW!"

"Nidoking, now!" Shawn called, anticipating the attack. "Grab her!"

Nidoking came back together just as Gatomon came at him, and wrapped his thick arms around her in a bone-crushing bear hug.

Shawn prayed that this would work. "Explosion!"

Everyone watched as Nidoking started to glow.

James turned around to run. "Hit the dirt! He's going to blow himself up!"

"No," T. K. cried, "stop!"

Shawn smirked as he turned toward him. He raised his hands in a gesture to Nidoking, and the glow faded.

"You can't do this, Shawn! Not only would you kill Gatomon, but your Nidoking's too weak to survive that attack! You'd kill him, too! Then, in the explosion, you'd bring the entire building down. You'd kill us all!"

"Don't preach to me," Shawn responded offhandedly. "It's your fault. Your friends are the ones who challenged me."

"Fine," T. K. answered, standing straight. "If that's the way you want to do it, then I challenge you! Outside!"

Shawn smiled widely as he nodded. "Agreed. Nidoking, put the kitten down. We're done playing with the little kids." Obediently, Nidoking let go of Gatomon, dropping her rudely. He turned and followed Shawn out of the lab, and the rest went after them.

Gatomon scowled after them as Kari bent down to pick her up. "Kitten? Little kids? Why, I'll – Ouch!" She raised her fist up to wave it after Shawn, but yelped as she twisted, a pain shooting up her back.

"Gatomon," Kari asked worriedly, "are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine," she answered, cringing. "It only _feels_ like he broke every bone in my body."

* * *

Shawn and T. K. stared each other down. Nidoking was already out in front of Shawn.

James watched as Pikachu ran over beside T. K., sparking as it turned to glare at Shawn. "Hey, we know that kid," he exclaimed, drawing the attention of Jesse and Domino. "That's the twerp! I'd recognize that annoying Pikachu anywhere!"

Jesse looked over at T. K. "Hey, you're right! It is him! What chance do you think he has up against this guy? Shawn, was it?"

"I don't know," James shrugged. "He beat us so many times it isn't even funny. If anyone can take out a Rocket Executive, it's the twerp."

Patamon fluttered down in front of Pikachu. "Hey, Pikachu, you mind if I try this time? I wouldn't mind having another shot at this guy!"

Pikachu looked at him curiously. "Pika, pika. Pikachu chu Pikachu."

"What?" T. K. asked, looking down at the two of them.

Patamon sweat dropped. "Oh, he was just reminding me that the last time I tried to take him on, I ended up getting slammed into a tree." He brightened up as he looked up at T. K. "But that's okay, right? Now that you're here, I can just digivolve!"

T. K. smiled as he thought about it. "Okay, sounds like a plan!" He looked down at Pikachu. "What do you think? You think we should let him have a shot at a Pokemon Battle, or what?"

"Pi," Pikachu answered, nodding.

"Okay, you got your wish, Patamon," He said, looking back toward Shawn as he unclipped his digivice, which started to glow as he held it out. "Time for Digivolution!"

The light shot out and surrounded Patamon.

"Patamon Digivolve to …!"

"Angemon!"

As the light faded, a tall angel stood where Patamon had fluttered only moments ago. He wore a helmet over his eyes, and there was a golden staff in his hand. He turned his head toward Pikachu. "How was that? I told you Digimon Digivolution was impressive!"

Pikachu looked up at him with wide eyes. "Pika pi," he sighed breathlessly before he fainted dead away.

Angemon just smirked and turned back toward the fight.

"Nidoking," Shawn yelled, "use your Thunderbolt!"

Nidoking sent the missile of electric energy flying toward Angemon, but he only stuck out his staff, spinning it around and shattering the attack as if it were nothing.

Jesse, James and Domino were all slack jawed. "What is this thing?" James asked in wonder. "He just knocked away a Thunderbolt as if it wasn't even there!"

"It's time to end your reign of terror here, Team Rocket," Angemon declared, his voice clear and solid, refuting any defiance. "Leave this place, and never come back! HAND OF FATE!"

He brought his hand back as it started to glow, then punched forward, sending out a beam of sheer light that hit them all with the force of a million battering rams. Shawn felt the ground fall away as the attack blew them off of their feet and blasted them away.

Somehow, Jesse and James found the energy to yell, "Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!"

When the light from the attack faded, none of them could be seen. T. K. immediately went over to Mrs. Kechum as Angemon dedigivolved back to Patamon. He knelt down in front of her. "Mom? Are you okay?"

She looked up at him, then paused a moment as she took in the hat, vest and gloves. "Ash? Is it really you?"

T. K. smiled. "Yeah, it's really me!" 

Matt came up behind T. K. "Hello, Mrs. Kechum. I'm T. K.'s, er, Ash's brother from the other dimension. I've heard a lot about you, and it's a pleasure to finally meet you."

She stared at him for a moment, then looked at T. K, back at Matt, then at T. K. again. "I can see the resemblance, although I don't think I ever heard you talk so eloquently as that, Ash. Please tell me you picked up some of your brother's manners while you were gone?

T. K. smiled as he rubbed his head. "Yeah, I guess some of it's rubbed off."

Mrs. Kechum stood up, wrapping her arms around her son. "Well, that's okay. You can tell me all about it when we get back to the house." She turned around to the rest of the group. "That counts for all of you, too! I expect every one of you there for lunch today! When I found out that there would be a big crowd, I went and fixed plenty of food, so don't be shy!"

Davis, Veemon, Tai and Agumon were already on the move. "Alright! Food!"

T. K. grinned as he turned back to his mother as they started to head toward the house. "You're really going to enjoy those four!"

She smiled back. "I can tell!"

"T. K.," Misty called, "can you hang back a second? There's something we need to tell you."

T. K. told his mom to go on, and he'd be there as soon as possible, then he went back with Misty, Brock and Gary. "What's up?"

"Well," Misty answered hesitantly, "we kinda feel bad you took it so hard on Shawn."

This caught T. K. by surprise. "You feel bad about it? He had it coming! He was holding you hostage!"

But Misty shook her head. "No, he wasn't. You see, not long after we got through, those other four showed up. Shawn was faking the hostage situation to try to get rid of them. He almost had it, but when you came through, you kind of interrupted his plans, and he had to improvise."

"But what about Gatomon?" Kari asked, coming up next to them.

"Yeah," the cat digimon agreed, "what about me? And why was he going to blow up his Nidoking?"

"I'm sure he didn't mean to hurt Gatomon, and I'm positive he wasn't going to have Nidoking blow itself up! He wouldn't hurt pokemon or digimon unless he had absolutely no other choice. I told you how he reacted after his battle with Brock and I!"

"But even if he never intended to," Kari insisted, "that still brings us back to the ultimate question: Why did he do it in the first place?"

T. K.'s eyes went wide as it clicked. "He was trying to force my hand!" When they looked at him curiously, he continued. "He knew that he wouldn't be able to beat me in a pokemon battle, but that was what he wanted! All that time, I thought he was trying to get me to fall into some little trap, when he was really trying to get me to give them all the boot at once!" He turned to look toward the horizon. "And I didn't hold back an ounce, because I thought he was really meaning it! Oh, no! What have I done!"

"Don't worry about it, T. K.," Kari reassured him. "Angemon's attack that he used only hurts evil. Since Shawn was trying to do something good, the only thing he will have to worry about is the fall! I'm sure he'll be fine."

T. K. sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right." He looked up, toward where everyone else was following his mom. "Come on, let's get going. We can't let Davis, Veemon, Tai and Agumon beat us there. I doubt even my mom could cook enough to feed them and still have enough for the rest of us!"

Kari smiled at him. "It's good to see that you haven't had any problems calling her you mother again."

T. K. smiled back. "Yeah, it's coming a lot easier than I thought it would!"

As the two of them walked off, Misty felt the jealousy rise inside of her. She could feel her face getting red, but Brock's hand came down on her shoulder. "Take it easy, Misty. They only smiled at each other. It's not like it's the end of the world, or anything! Besides, it's something he has to choose, not you. In the meantime, there's no sense in acting irrationally when we're guests at his mother's house!"

They started following the others, but Misty broke off as something white caught her eye. She went over and picked it up, rotating it in her hands. Brock came up behind her, curious.

"What is it, Misty?"

"It's Domino's hat! It must have been knocked off when Angemon sent them flying!"

* * *

They all yelled as they felt gravity take over and they started falling back toward the ground. A cloud of dust lifted up as they hit. Shawn groaned as he pushed himself up, looking around. Domino was unconscious beside him, her already short shirt pushed unusually high from the landing. He looked away quickly, his neck hot in embarrassment. He looked the other way, finding Jesse, James and Meowth piled on top of each other, stunned from impact.

"You three," he demanded, "are you okay?"

"Okey-dokey, boss," James answered unsteadily, waving with one hand. "Just give us a moment to rest up." So saying, he collapsed, and he and Jesse were out. Meowth struggled out from underneath them.

"I was fine until they landed on top of me," he said, glaring back at the unconscious pair. He looked around. "Hey, where's Nidoking?" He looked up as a roar filled the sky and a faint outline became visible. "Uh oh, incoming! Hit the dirt!"

Shawn turned around, and yelped as the details became clear. He pulled the pokeball out in reaction, flinching away. "Ah! Nidoking, return!" The giant pokemon disappeared in a flash of red light mere feet above them. "Phew," Shawn sighed, looking down at the pokeball. "I think I just saved you and I, both, a lot of pain, my friend!"

Meowth looked up at the empty sky, then at Shawn. "Wow, you did it! You caught him! That's what I call reflexes!"

Shawn grinned as he reached down and scratched Meowth behind the ears. "That's why you're the grunt, and I'm the Executive, my furry friend!" He went back over to Domino to make sure she didn't have any wounds that needed treatment. "Wow, she's pretty beat up!" And she was. There didn't seem to be anything serious, but bruises were showing up all over her, and she was definitely going to be sore for a while. He reached down to pull the shirt back down to decency, but Meowth grabbed hold of his arm.

"No, not yet! Hold on a minute!" Shawn looked after the cat curiously as he ran over and got a camera out of a pack that the three of them had. "A sleeping Domino," Meowth said as he raised the camera and took the picture. "How uncharacteristically peaceful!" He stepped back as she began to stir.

"Quick, Meowth," Shawn whispered, holding his hand out. "Give me the camera!" Meowth did so without question, and Shawn stepped in front, snapping a picture just as she opened her eyes, catching her clear, blue eyes wide, unfocused, a little wet, and entirely captivating. He grinned widely as she tried to focus, still a little stunned from the fall, and handed the camera back to Meowth. "Now, run, Meowth! Run very fast! Before she comes around enough to figure it out!"

Domino did little more than stare after the cat as he took the camera and ran, then looked up at Shawn, her mind still seeming to be running a little slow. "What's going on? Who are you?"

A puzzled look crossed Shawn's face. "What do you mean, Domino? It's me, Shawn! Shawn Rae!"

Her eyebrows furrowed for a moment, but then she shook her head. "Nope, don't recognize you." She tilted her head as something else he said caught up with her. "Am I Domino?"

He moved over and put a hand on her shoulder. "Well, that's what everyone calls you, so I can only assume you are."

A light smile played on her lips. "You're trying to be funny."

He smiled back, though his felt dopey and lopsided. "Is it working?"

"A little."

"Let me see your head." He pushed her hair away from her face, checking for any marks. Amazingly, there wasn't a bruise or scratch on her entire head, except for on her chin and lip, the former a little scraped, and the latter split a little on the end. After a moment, he drew back, shaking his head. "I don't get it. It doesn't look like you hit your head all that hard. That fall must have hit you harder than it looks."

"Fall?" She looked up at the sky. "Yes, I remember falling."

"Anything else?"

"Light," she answered, her eyes still unfocused. "Lots and lots of light."

**** __

In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:

When Shawn's plans to get rid of Team Rocket went awry, he had to force T. K. into having Angemon blow them to oblivion. Now, it seems that the blow has caused Domino to lose her memory. While Shawn tries to help her remember, the Digidestined and Pokemon Trainers get a brief rest at Mrs. Kechum's house. What awaits them when they head out to find the portal? Will they be able to find Shawn? Will Domino get her memory back? Find out next time on The Pokemon Master's Return: Chapter 10 – _Without a Past!_


	10. Without a Past

Chapter 10

Without a Past

"Oh, I'm stuffed," Davis proclaimed as he finished up his tenth plate of food. "Wow, that really hit the spot! I haven't had food that good in forever!"

Mrs. Ketchum chuckled. "That's good! I always love it when people enjoy my cooking!" She turned toward T.K. "Ash? Would you like some more? You've only had a couple of plates!"

T.K. smiled thankfully. "No, but thanks. I've actually cut back a lot on how much I eat."

She blinked in surprise. "Really?" She couldn't seem to picture him eating such a relatively small amount. "I'm used to you eating more like your friend, Davis."

"Believe me, Mrs. Ketchum," Matt spoke up with a grin as some of the older Digidestined caught a hint of what he was about to say, "it still happens from time to time."

"Matt!" T.K. gave a small cry of protest at the mention of his eating habits.

Kari chuckled, covering her mouth a bit. "Oh, come on, T.K.! Admit it! You should see him when Yolei brings brownies, Mrs. Ketchum!"

The Bearer of Hope dropped his head in embarrassment, his cheeks flushing. "Aw, not you, too, Kari! You guys know I rarely eat like that!"

"Yeah, right," Patamon butted in, hanging over T.K.'s head to look at his partner upside-down. "You were doing it just this morning!"

T.K. took a friendly swat at the digimon. "I wasn't that bad!"

Patamon and Pikachu both jumped up on the table, Pikachu grabbing a spoon. "Let's see if we remember this right …"

At Patamon's words, Pikachu began pretending to gobble something up so quickly that one bite barely seemed down his throat before another spoonful was shoved in.

Suddenly, in a surprisingly good imitation of his mother, Patamon suddenly shouted out, "T.K. Takaishi!"

Pikachu sat up straight as a board and everyone in the room broke up laughing as the spoon clattered to the table, then applauded as the two hams took a bow.

"Yep, that sounds like our Ash, alright," Misty managed to squeeze out through her laughter.

Brock nodded in agreement. "Do you have any idea how hard it was to keep our food stocked with the way he ate? And I had to buy just the ingredients, because if I brought anything already made, it'd be gone before I could warm it up!"

"Hey," Gary interjected, "at least _you_ never had to have a birthday party with him!" He held up his index finger. "Grandpa tried putting us side by side _one_ time! My slice of cake was in his mouth before I could reach for my fork!"

This earned another roar of laughter from them all, and Kari put a hand on T.K.'s shoulder. "Wow, you were really a wild one, weren't you, T.K.?"

Before he could answer, Gary spoke up again. "Does he still sleep like he used to?"

This drew a confused gaze from some of them. "Sleep? What do you mean?"

Gary grinned proudly, glad to share more dirt on T.K.'s time in the Pokemon dimension. "He slept like a rock! The day we were all supposed to get our first pokemon, the klutz had thrown his alarm clock across the room in his sleep! Not only did he show up an hour late, but he came in his pajamas!"

T.K. faulted sideways in sheer shock at being reminded of that, barely missing Kari as the girl pulled her legs in. As he pulled himself back up, he turned on Gary. "Did you have to share _that_ story?"

But Gary's smirk remained. "Well, I suppose I could tell them about how when you first tried to hold Pikachu, the rodent hated you so much he lit you up like a Christmas tree!" He didn't notice as the electric mouse in question snuck up behind him and into his seat. "Man, that rat was one good judge of character!" He went to fall back into his seat, but was promptly sent flying back up after sitting on Pikachu and getting thoroughly electrocuted.

Everyone laughed, but this time, it was at the rival. Tai leaned on his shoulder as he stood back up. "What was that you were saying about character, Gary?"

"I don't know," Yolei piped in. "I think he was right. Pikachu certainly knew a big mouth when he saw it!"

Gary let out a growl, but T.K. interrupted him. "Guys, this is great fun and all, especially now that we've gotten off of the topic of me, but don't you think we should be going? We need to at least find out how bad this tear has gotten."

Mimi let out a sigh. "You know, T.K., for the bearer of Hope, you sure have a way of ruining a party atmosphere …"

Palmon, her pokemon, patted her on the shoulder. "He's right though, isn't he, Mimi? We should get out there."

She nodded. "Yeah, we should."

Mrs. Ketchum began gathering up their plates so they would be out of the way. "You will all be careful, won't you?"

T.K. nodded to his mother. "Don't worry, mom. We'll be fine."

She wrapped her arms around him. "Oh, Ash, I hope so. I've missed you so much. I'd hate to lose you again."

T.K. hugged her back, but hesitated before speaking. "Don't worry, we won't lose."

---------------------

T.K. looked back at the others as they crested the first hill outside of Pallet Town. In a way, it almost felt like his first adventure in this world, except this time, he had a far more serious mission than just to be the best pokemon trainer.

He wasn't any less enthusiastic, though. With only three trainers to eleven Digidestined – neither number counting him – it looked unbalanced, but each trainer had six powerful and loyal pokemon, and all of both groups had proven their mettle. Counting all members of this party, humans, pokemon and digimon, they numbered at an astounding force of forty-eight, and if he counted himself and Patamon in the Digidestined and added his six pokemon to the other side, it came out to a precise twenty-four on each side – perfectly balanced. There was no way they could lose.

Brock came up beside him and pointed ahead. "Hey, is that who I think it is?" On the hill up ahead, drawing a sketch of a couple of playing Rattatas, was a young man with black hair held up out of his face with a red bandana.

Misty came up, too. "It is! It's Tracey! Hey!" She waved toward him as she called out, and Professor Oak's assistant stood up as the group arrived, not looking anywhere near the numbers they really were, since the digimon were hiding in their partners' packs to stay out of sight and all the pokemon but Pikachu were in their poke balls.

"Oh, hey!" Tracy waved back in greeting. "Brock, Misty, good to see you two! Quite a crowd you've got with you! What's the occasion?"

Misty, Brock and T.K. looked at each other, considering telling him, but then Misty shook her head. "New trainers," she explained, gesturing to the Digidestined. "We're taking them through Viridian Forest to the gym in Pewter City. We thought it might be helpful if they could get some lessons there."

"Oh?" Tracey asked curiously. "I didn't know Pewter Gym was giving trainer lessons."

"This is the first group," Brock stepped in. "Sort of like a trial run. If it goes well, we'll probably be having regular schedules for them. You'd be kind of bored there, though. We'll be covering a lot of basics that would just put you to sleep."

"Oh, alright," the pokemon artist agreed. "If you insist." His eyes landed on T.K. and Pikachu and his face lit up. "Well, how about that? Another trainer with a Pikachu! That brings back memories?"

They all sweatdropped. "Um, Tracey," Misty interjected, "this is one of our guides … Actually …"

"It's me, Ash," T.K. exclaimed.

Tracey stepped back and observed the outfit and all. "Wow, you've got a good impersonation, I'll give you that! Your outfit looks a lot like him! But you don't." He dug into his folder and came out with a sketch he had done of Ash and Pikachu several years earlier when he had been traveling with them. It showed Pikachu on Ash's shoulder and both of them holding up their victory sign.

"Oh, that! Yeah, that's easy, look!" He grabbed a pokeball off of his belt and held it out in front of him as he held his fingers up in a victory sign, and with a happy cry, Pikachu hopped up on his shoulders and mimicked him, just like they had done so many times.

"Ooh!" Tracey grinned and applauded. "Oh, yes, you're very good! That's just how he always did it!"

T.K. growled in frustration. "That's because I AM Ash!"

Tracey stepped back in surprise, but shook his head. "No … Ash has black hair and brown eyes …" He turned to Misty and Brock. "Is he … uh … okay upstairs?"

Misty sighed. "Tracey, this really is Ash. He always had his hair colored and wore contacts before."

Tracey looked from Misty to T.K. and back to Misty again. "Really? But why?"

"I had amnesia," T.K. answered. "Mom adopted me when she found me and nobody came for me. The face of a stranger that I saw every time I passed a mirror bothered me so much that she gave me contacts and dyed my hair. I had kept the look ever since, until the memories came back to me."

"Wow." For a moment, Tracey seemed to have been struck speechless, then he shook his head. "Wow, well it's good to see you back, Ash! We missed you around here when you disappeared!"

He grinned in response. "Thanks! I'd love to catch up with you more, but we really should be going. We want to be done before the day's out."

"Oh, yeah, sorry about that." Tracey waved after them as the group passed. "Take care, and good luck with the classes!"

As they headed on past, Davis came up next to T.K. "Hey, T.J., don't you think we should have told that guy what was going on? I mean, if he's such a good friend of yours, he deserves to know, right?"

Gary spoke for him. "Not really. How would you like to tell one of your friends that the world was going to end and there was nothing they could do about it? It's not exactly easy on the nerves. Ash was just being the normal mushy fool he always was!"

Tai nodded in agreement. "While I don't really care for how he said it, Gary's right. We should try to keep news of this quiet. The last thing this world needs is widespread panic."

------------------

Shawn pushed through the underbrush at the head of the group. Immediately behind him was Domino, and behind her were Jesse, James and Meowth. They had started moving as soon as Jesse and James came to, and were now nearing the middle of Viridian Forest.

Domino looked around as they went, her eyes filled with wonder at everything they passed. She had most definitely lost her memory, and was learning about everything around her all over again. She turned to one side and let out a small gasp, gripping Shawn by the shoulder. "Shawn … I know I'm new to all of this, but … I thought we were further from the city?"

Shawn turned to look and froze in surprise. "We are … But that's not Viridian City …"

The other three came up behind them and James was the first to speak. "Well, what is it, then, if it's not Viridian City?"

The Rocket Executive was silent for a bit before he answered. "It's my home."

"What?" Meowth squawked, jumping up on Jesse's shoulder. "I thought your home was in the other dimension! What's it doin' here?"

"Well, that's the question, isn't it?" she growled in annoyance, prying the cat off of her head. "Get off of me, you talking fur ball!"

"It's not," Shawn answered, staring at the sight, drawing their attention all back at the statement.

"It's not?" James asked. "But if it's _not_ here, then what is it _doing_ here?"

"It's not," he repeated simply, then pointed down at the ground. The forest stopped at an exact line, and the street picked up immediately on the other side of that line. They could even see the cars and people traveling by on the other side, though for some reason, they couldn't see the forest, or were ignoring it. "It's not here. It's there. The dimensional tear has grown so large that we can see my world through it."

"Wow, that's kind of scary," Domino responded, taking a step back from it.

"Yeah, really," James agreed. "It's like the universe ripped a hole in its underwear, or something."

"More like she did," Shawn answered, pointing to Domino, who looked up at his finger in confusion.

"Me? Why would I do something so horrible?"

Jesse gave the blonde girl a dirty scowl. "Because _you_ were horrible, you dumb blonde…"

Shawn snapped his fingers at Jesse's words. "Jesse, do I need to remind you who the superior officer is here? Do you really want to know what I will do to you if I hear you utter another disrespectful word toward Domino? She may have lost her memory, but she hasn't lost her rank. She is still a Rocket Executive and you are still a grunt with a bad track record."

Jesse swallowed quickly and stood up straight at the sudden change in tone to Shawn's now-stern voice. "Uh, yes sir, I understand, sir!" She turned back and glared at James and Meowth, who were laughing at her predicament.

Shawn turned his attention back to the portal before them. He reached down to the ground and picked a stone up off of the ground. He bounced it in his hand for a moment in thought before throwing it through. The scene seemed to waver, like a puddle, as it passed through, but then they saw it clearly clatter to the pavement on the other side.

Jesse watched the stone in silence for a moment before speaking what was on everyone else's mind. "We're not going through there, are we?"

Shawn smirked, a particular smirk that he had developed as a Rocket Executive. "Oh, not only are we going through, Jesse. You're going first."

"You're kidding, right?" she demanded, an expression of sheer shock on her face. "This is because of what I said to Domino, isn't it?"

Shawn just nodded to her. "Yes, Jesse. That's exactly what it's for. Now get going."

_In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:_

T.K. and the others make their way into Viridian Forest, unknowingly right behind Shawn and Team Rocket, who step through the portal to return to the Rocket Executive's world. However, MewTwo appears before the Digidestined with yet another grave warning. Meanwhile, Shawn seeks out the help of an old friend. What danger has the psychic pokemon foreseen this time? Will Shawn be able to convince his friend to aid them? What about Giovanni? Now that Shawn is back home, how will he avoid the all-seeing eyes of the tyrannical emperor of his world? Find out next time on The Pokemon Master's Return: Chapter 11 – _Home Sweet … Home?_


	11. Home Sweet Home?

Chapter 11

Home Sweet … Home?

They were hardly into the forest before it happened. As soon as they were out of sight of the exit, a strange sensation assaulted their senses as the environment around the Digi-Destined and trainers pulsated in negative colors. It gave them all headaches, but by the time they reached up to hold their heads, it was gone, and before them stood the kangaroo-like psychic pokemon, MewTwo.

_I apologize for the pain my entrance must have caused,_ he opened, telepathically broadcasting his message to all of their minds. _I did not dare enter without first assuring my power would be focused in our present location, for fear my presence would disrupt the tear._

Gary took a step back in shock as he eyed MewTwo. "What in the world? What is this? A pokemon?"

T.K. grinned as he turned to face Gary. "Oh, that's right. You two have never met, have you? MewTwo, this is Gary Oak, Professor Oak's grandson and my rival during my adventures as a pokemon trainer. Gary, this is MewTwo, the most powerful psychic in the world. He's also a pretty skilled pokemon breeder!"

MewTwo dipped his head. _It has been many years since that incident, T.K. I left that side of me behind long ago. I ask that you not bring my foolishness up in such a manner._

T.K. nodded apologetically. "Yeah, sorry … I slipped."

Gary dug about in his pockets before pulling out what looked like a red PDA as he flipped it open. "Been a while since I've used this …" He held it up so MewTwo was in the viewfinder and the device went to work.

"Entry registered as MewTwo," the mechanical voice sounded from the device. "Habitat unknown. Type unknown. Personality unknown. Altered strains of DNA similar to legendary pokemon Mew detected, biological engineering suspected. Psychic energies emanating from subject on an immeasurable scale. Recommend extreme caution."

At the readout, Gary and the Digi-Destined took a step back in reaction, but the psychic pokemon seemed to scowl at the Pokedex in disappointment. _Even machines seem to fear my presence …_

"It can't fear your presence," Ken answered, speaking up for the first time in a while. "It's a machine. It just recorded a sample of your power and offered strategic advice based on those readings. I'm sure it'd say much the same thing about Imperialdramon."

"It was a figure of speech, Ken," T.K. answered sharply, scowling at the former Dark Emperor.

"Oh, I'm sure he knows that," Yolei chimed in, propping herself against Ken's shoulders. "I think he's just jealous."

_There is nothing to envy about my life,_ MewTwo stated, _but that is not what I came here to discuss. Ash, there is something you must know about. There is something else besides the tear._

T.K. turned back to the psychic in surprise. "Something else?"

He nodded. _Another force. The threat of the tear is a neutral threat, dangerous, but neither good nor evil. This other force … this entity … It is dark, and I can feel it residing between this world and the one the Executive came from. Perhaps not between them, specifically, but between worlds in general. I am certain it is self-aware, and this tear has drawn its gaze. I have come to the suspicion that the tear is not widening solely on its own, but with this entity's help._

"Oh great," Sora muttered, rubbing her forehead.

Tai nodded in agreement. "Yeah … another great being of evil … Do they ever stop coming?"

"But why?" T.K. spoke this time, directing his question to MewTwo. "Tears, weak spots between worlds, they're all over the place. If it wanted to total everything, it could do it at any time, without having to let something else do its work, and these things rarely have such flat goals, anyway. Why this one? Why now?"

_I do not think it is trying to collapse the dimensions. I have detected great frustration from the entity. It is imprisoned and it struggles to escape. I believe … it wants in._

---

His world was just as he remembered it. Nothing had changed, though he reminded himself, why should it be otherwise? He hadn't been gone that long, a few days at the most. World-hopping must have made it seem like a lot more.

The city the tear resided in was, fortunately, the same city with the one place he could think of to go. Kat's grass gym was a short walk away through back alleys, where civilians didn't question them and agents didn't see them. He sent Jesse and James in first just in case, and when they said everything was fine, he and Domino followed suit.

Inside, the gym was as beautiful as always. Incredible floral displays lined the walls, and the entire inside was a sort of inside park, with paved pathways of earthen stone winding through lush grass and great, full trees of all sorts. In this first part, there weren't any walls, only one wide-open area where trainers, mostly girls but a small handful of boys as well, played with their pokemon or learned various flower arrangements or gardening tips. It was the secret to Kathryn's success here. Not only did the place serve as the official Pokemon Gym for this city, but it also served as a premier school in a wide variety of horticultural, homemaking and decorating studies. It was Kat's pride and joy, everything she loved and ever wanted to do all under one roof.

"Oh, wow, it's all so pretty," Domino observed softly, as if afraid to disturb it. "It's hard to believe we just came inside from the city streets."

"It's like the Garden of Eden," James agreed. "I could stay here forever!"

Meowth crossed his arms, shaking his head. "Not me, Meowth. All the dirt under your paws, and imagine the allergies! I'll stick to the city, thank you! All this open space, there's not even anywhere to prowl!"

"But just imagine, Meowth," Jesse insisted as she looked around, eyes wide. "Just picture how incredible it would be to just spend a day laying around under the trees, watching the sunlight drift through the limbs as you relax on the soft grass ... Mmm, I'm getting drowsy just thinking about it!"

"Drowzee!" That particular psychic pig just happened to be waddling along when she said that and hurried over ecstatically to cling to her leg.

"Gagh!" The woman squealed in disgust as she kicked her leg to try to get it to let go. "I didn't mean YOU, you pig! Let go of me!"

Shawn couldn't help himself. He laughed, and hard. "Don't be so surprised, Jesse. This gym also serves as a haven for orphaned or abandoned pokemon that have nowhere else to go. This Drowzee probably thought you just said you were going to take it home with you!"

That seemed to make her even more anxious to get Drowzee to let go. "Ew! As if! Why would I want a stinking mud-wallower?"

Domino had been chuckling – almost giggling – at the entire scene, and now, she knelt down and held her arms open for the pokemon, which came over and embraced her as she rubbed its head. "Actually, I think it's pretty cute!"

"The adoption process is pretty straight-forward," Shawn told her. "If you want, I'm sure we can arrange it while we're here. Hmm?" He looked over as he thought he spotted a small, red head poking out from behind the door at the other end of the park that led into the actual gym portion of the complex, but it pulled back in a moment later.

Meowth noticed the pause and looked toward the Executive with concern. "Is somethin' wrong, Meowth?"

But Shawn just grinned. "Not at all. I think I just spotted a familiar face. Come on, let's go."

He led the way down the paths toward the far side as the others followed, Drowzee tagging alongside Domino. They had just passed through the wide double-doors when they saw a Flareon urging a petite young woman around the corner.

"Flareon, what are you doing? Where are we going?" But the fire pokemon didn't answer, instead turning to the doorway and letting out a triumphant cry before rushing forward and jumping into Shawn's arms. The woman followed the pokemon with her eyes and seemed to freeze in stunned surprise, then slowly walking toward them.

"Hey, Flareon," Shawn greeted his old pokemon with a wide grin, ruffling its head. "I noticed you saw us coming. Decided to form a welcoming party, did you?"

"Flare!"

"Shawn ..." Kat's word drew his attention from his pokemon to her, and he set Flareon down and stepped toward her. "Shawn ... is it really you? They ... they told me you were dead ..."

"It's a long story," he answered, wrapping his arms around her, "but let me tell you it later. Right now, it feels like it's been forever since I've held you."

Domino and Meowth watched in rapt, reverent silence, but suddenly, James ruined the moment by blowing his nose, sounding like a trumpet in the silence. The others all turned to look at him.

Even Jesse, who had been looking at it with a more neutral expression, reached over and slapped the crying man in the back of the head. "What do you think you're doing, you blubbering fool?"

"I'm so sorry," James cried before blowing his nose again. "It's just so touching!"

Domino looked over at them in confusion and said something she might have said when she still had her memories, only in this case, it was softer and less accusatory. "I thought you two were supposed to be Rockets? Shouldn't you be tougher, or something?"

Kat pulled away when she spoke, looking over toward her. "Oh. Agent Domino, I'm sorry, I didn't see you there."

Then the blonde did something that really threw the poor girl for a loop. She smiled. "It's okay. You haven't seen him in a long time, right? I don't think I'd see much else if that happened to me, either."

The Gym Leader stared at her for several moments as if she had grown an extra head. "... You ... don't mind?"

"Should I?" she asked in confusion as she returned a similarly lost expression.

"... Is she okay?" Kat asked, turning back to look up at Shawn and recalling a very different Domino, one far more protective of Shawn when it came to feminine affection, whether he liked her or not.

Shawn gave a small smile. "I think it's time for that story. Could I speak to you alone?"

She nodded. "Of course, but what about them?"

He turned to look back at the other three. "Domino, if you still want to adopt Drowzee, the office for that is down the hall and to your left. Jesse, James, you two go with her and help however you can."

Domino smiled brightly as she took Drowzee's hand and hurried down the hall, the other two Rockets and Meowth moving to go after her.

"See?" Shawn grinned widely as he turned back to her, and she chuckled. "Piece of cake!"

She nodded as they began walking toward the back. "But coming here with another Executive and two grunts ... You must be here on business?"

"Well, not exactly," he answered. "Like I said, it's a long story, and it's probably best if I start at the beginning ..."

_In the next chapter of The Pokemon Master's Return:_

Shawn has finally met up with his girlfriend, Kathryn, Leader of the Grass Gym in his world. While sending the others away, he takes time to speak with her in private, telling her about all that has happened on his adventure, but he's forgotten one very important thing! Will she be convinced, or will it all blow up in his face? Find out next time on The Pokemon Master's Return: Chapter 12 – _Show Your Stuff, Metapod!_


End file.
